Some direct quotes from this article – please do read the full article… “I do know something about healthcare, however, and it has been frustrating to hear the promises made in the past week about the NHS in Scotland. In the UK, we are facing increasing privatisation of the NHS and there is very little anyone can do about it in Scotland so long as we remain part of the UK. While it is technically correct that control of the NHS in Scotland is currently devolved to the Scottish Parliament, the UK government is a member state of the EU and the European Commission is currently negotiating with the US a free trade agreement of unprecedented scale which will affect Scotlands ability to control its NHS. Gordon Browns optimism that he can protect the NHS is unlikely to be justified. UK health secretary Jeremy Hunt has said recently that TTIP will not affect the NHS but the attractive aspect of this treaty for those intent on privatisation is the fact that ending private contracts would render a future Labour government liable to be sued for loss of profits. Privatisation of the NHS in Britain is, therefore, locked in to the future. Allowing American healthcare companies to run our health service seems insane,… The comfortably off are misjudging the future if they think playing it safe is the way to go next week. There is no status quo in our economic future. The times are changing and the only choice is whether we want to be in control of our future or are we happy to hand it over to people who have shown they care little for the weak and the poor. The policies being pursued by the UK Government will widen inequality in our society and more and more of the middle classes will be caught on the wrong side of the divide. Jimmy Reids rectorial address to Glasgow University students in 1971 identified alienation as the cause of social difficulties in Scotland. He defined it as the cry of those who feel themselves the victims of blind economic forces beyond their control. If we remain in the UK after Thursday, prepare for a growing sense of alienation.” heraldscotland/comment/columnists/in-the-uk-we-face-increasing-privatisation-of-the-nhs-and-there-is-little-scotlan.25315128
Posted on: Sun, 14 Sep 2014 12:21:01 +0000
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