Northerner
Admin (Retired)
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
At the end of april, a crucial lords vote (245 to 146) failed to throw out 'section 75' (of the health and social care act). this regulation requires the NHS to put ALL its services to tender unless the commissioners can prove there is only one provider capable of delivering (any such decision being open to costly legal challenge from private healthcare companies).
Many believe that the legislation will lead to the gradual but wholesale privatisation of the UK healthcare system, and after 65 years of NHS it marks the retirement of public healthcare. additionally, the legislation has been devised and passed with little or no democratic mandate and in fact breaks firm promises and assurances that ministers have given. the full scope of the new act has received little analysis and coverage from mainstream media, and the unions, while offering lip-service to resistance, have failed to provide any real opposition to the government's plans.
Yesterday then, marked a huge achievement for a small grassroots group calling themselves 'NHSdirectaction' who have brought together local health campaigns, doctors, trade unionists, concerned residents, and the 'occupy' movement, and managed mainly through social media to pull together a very impressive london march and rally in protest at the new legislation.
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2013/05/509576.html
Many believe that the legislation will lead to the gradual but wholesale privatisation of the UK healthcare system, and after 65 years of NHS it marks the retirement of public healthcare. additionally, the legislation has been devised and passed with little or no democratic mandate and in fact breaks firm promises and assurances that ministers have given. the full scope of the new act has received little analysis and coverage from mainstream media, and the unions, while offering lip-service to resistance, have failed to provide any real opposition to the government's plans.
Yesterday then, marked a huge achievement for a small grassroots group calling themselves 'NHSdirectaction' who have brought together local health campaigns, doctors, trade unionists, concerned residents, and the 'occupy' movement, and managed mainly through social media to pull together a very impressive london march and rally in protest at the new legislation.
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2013/05/509576.html