Queen’s Speech 2015: Everything we know so far including the EU referendum, devolution, Human Rights Act, income tax, housing and Scotland May 26, 2015 The Queen's Speech will unveil the Conservative government's policy agenda on Wednesday and having shed its coalition partner at the General Election, some pretty major shifts in policy are expected. Here are some of the top pledges expected to feature in the state opening of parliament tomorrow. EU referendum bill Having committed to holding an [...]
Healthcare needs radical reform – but Cameron must brace for the backlash May 18, 2015 The new government’s policy on public services was launched yesterday by the Prime Minister, with an uncompromising statement of NHS reform. He pledged more competition, including in the private sector. He promised wholesale changes in the delivery of services, so that GPs, hospitals and other services work together and prevent ill health in the first [...]
Budget 2015: Here’s Britain’s wish list for George Osborne – more spending on NHS, education, tax cuts and transport, slash pensions and benefits for older people May 15, 2015 [infographic id="117"] The British public want the government to spend more on the NHS, education and tax cuts, and slash the cash set aside for welfare and older people's benefits such as pensions, bus passes and the winter fuel allowance by £75bn. George Osborne is expected to announce his second Budget of the year shortly [...]
General Election 2015: Tungsten Corp CEO Edmund Truell wants more help for small businesses and the privatisation of NHS care provision April 30, 2015 ELECTION COUNTDOWN: 6 DAYS TO GO Every day until the final week of the election campaign, we ask a business leader to say what policies would entice them to vote for a particular party. EDMUND TRUELL: CEO, TUNGSTEN CORP Next week’s General Election promises to be the closest we have seen for [...]
General Election: Only Scottish patients are getting the best new drugs on the NHS April 27, 2015 Terminally ill people in Scotland are being given the best new cancer drugs, while those in the rest of the UK are being deprived of them. This apparently unfair difference stems from the way drug provision by NHS England and NHS Scotland is regulated, with Scotland's drug monitoring body making it much easier for [...]
General Election 2015: AA CFO Martin Clarke wants honesty on NHS spending and an end to non-dom tax breaks April 20, 2015 ELECTION COUNTDOWN: 16 DAYS TO GO Every day until the final week of the election campaign, we ask a business leader to say what policies would entice them to vote for a particular party. MARTIN CLARKE: CFO, AA ■ Had the courage to admit that throwing money at the NHS is not [...]
General Election 2015: Conservatives pledge £8bn a year for the NHS April 11, 2015 The Tories will inject an extra £8bn a year into the NHS if they win the general election, the party has announced. As part of a bid to revolutionize the health services, the Conservatives will guarantee over-75s same-day access to a GP and provide access to GPs on the weekends and in the evenings. [...]
NHS letter “orchestrated by Labour”, say Tories April 8, 2015 The Conservative Party has accused Labour of "orchestrating" a letter claiming the government has dealt a serious blow to the NHS. However, speaking to the BBC, the Tories pointed out some of the 140 doctors who had signed the letter were public Labour supporters and advisers. Published in The Guardian, the letter claimed the last [...]
Novartis accused of losing money for the NHS by blocking competitor drug trial April 2, 2015 Novartis has come under fire for trying to derail trials of an eye treatment drug that would save money for the NHS – an allegation the pharmaceutical company denies. Avastin, officially a cancer drug, is highly effective at treating wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a disease that affects around 26,00 people in the UK each [...]
Forget NHS romanticism: Market-based healthcare is far better for patients April 1, 2015 Nigel Crisp knows the NHS better than almost anyone. In his role as its chief executive (2000-2006), he oversaw the formulation and, partly, the implementation of transformative reforms. His book “24 hours to save the NHS” can serve as an antidote to the popular penchant for “NHS romanticism”, because in parts it is a story [...]