Rescuing Democracy in the United Kingdom from our current Elected Dictatorship
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Spin,
not face-to-face confrontations with the voters, is the Government's
chosen method of communication. Ordinary people are dangerous. Ordinary
people might ask a question which throws a politician 'off message';
the Cabinet member might reveal himself or herself to be a human being
like us, and not a programmed android. Worse still, he or she might
tell the truth.
Ann Leslie - Daily Mail, September 16, 2004
Blair wants to leave his
mark on history - looks more like a stain to me.
Peter Thorndyke, Diss,
Norfolk - Daily Mail, May 23, 2005
I know I'm me - why do I
need an ID card?
"Sorry, officers, I
don't have an ID card. I never applied for one. It seemed a bit steep
at 300 quid. I do have my free passport, my driving licence and my
London freedom travel pass, each with my photograph. I have my NHS
medical card, with its lengthy number, given me at birth, my RAF
service book with my Armed Forces number, and a chit authorising me to
wear a few gongs -including a General Service Medal with Malaya bar,
for fighting communist terrorists on behalf of my country, or so they
told me.
"I've also got various credit
cards and store cards, all with my signature on the back, generally
good for buying the everyday requrements for life as well as the odd
luxury. If you decide to arrest me, I suppose I'll have to be
photographed and given another number, besides my PINs.
"I'm afraid I haven't got a
pension book; it was taken away."
"By thieves, sir?"
"No ... well, not exactly. By the
Government. By the way, may I see your warrant cards please, gentlemen?"
Oh dear, they've disappeared. E.
Harry Gumer, Romford, ESSEX - Daily Mail, June 1, 2005
NO means NO
When does NO mean MAYBE?
When it's not the answer the EU wants. With the courageous French
NON resounding in their ears, shabby, undemocratic self-interested
leaders of Europe propose ignoring the part of their precious
constitution that requires ratification by all members and
continuing without one of the biggest founder members to
prevent derailing the gravy train.
As in Ireland,
they refuse to accept any NO votes, ignoring the will of the people,
and re-stage votes until they can engineer the 'correct' answer. Sadly,
Foreign Secretary Jack Straw dances to their tune like a puppet on a
string. With tactics such as these, how can anyone really believe the
EU has our interests at heart. Letter from Steve Penny, Kingsnorth, Kent - Daily
Mail, June1, 2005
Surely
the French result makes the £1million the EU recently spent on a
treaty signing ceremony seem a trifle premature and extravagant. Letter from Keith Wiseman, Bury, Lancs. - Daily Mail,
June1, 2005
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Britain has
traditionally been one of the biggest net contributors to the EU
because we do not get as much money back from Brussels in farm and
regional subsidies as our rivals.
According to
Treasury figures, between 1995-2002, Britain's average contribution
taking the rebate into account, was £2.6billion, or £43.55
per head of population.
The French -
the biggest recipient of farm subsidies - contributed £1billion a
year or £16.08 per head of their population.
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December
28, 2005 (959 days since Iraq war ended)
Death Toll: 2,172 US - 98UK - >>30,000?
Iraqi - 25 media
January
16, 2006 (978 days since Iraq war ended)
Death Toll: 2,219 US - 98UK - >>30,000?
Iraqi - 25 media
March 18, 2006 (1043 days since war ended)
Death
Toll: 2317US - 103UK - >>6,164? Iraqi - >>17,300?
civilians - 25 media
| Tony
Blair should know that respect comes by example - from the
top. If a country's leader has no respect for the rule of
international law and no respect for the truth, how can he
expect anyone to have respect. Letter
from P.J.Atkinson, Ashford, Kent - Daily Mail, January 12,
2006 |
Hundreds
of Scottish dentists set to leave NHS due to Executive funding
gaps
LYNDSAY MOSS - HEALTH CORRESPONDENT
- THE SCOTSMAN
*
Dentists say NHS plans might make treatment situation worse
* Funding for those willing to take on patients described as "a
nightmare"
* Call for government and dentists to "thrash out their differences"
Key
quote
"If we are losing out on this money we may not have any choice
but to not have as many NHS patients on our lists. It is the vulnerable,
the most disadvantaged who are being penalised." - dentist
Colin Crawford
Story
in full
Thousands
more Scots are set to lose access to NHS dental services because
dentists say they cannot afford to keep treating them. The Scottish
Executive has pledged to improve the nation's poor oral health
record by boosting the dental workforce and increasing access
for patients. But
dentists say the plan could make the situation worse, with as
many as 300 dentists failing to qualify for incentives designed
to persuade them to take on more NHS patients.
One
dentist said he had been refused an allowance even though he treats
more than 2,000 NHS patients - more than half of them children
- and no private patients at all. Others have spoken of their
battle for funding, leaving many facing the prospect of axing
free treatment for children and other NHS patients to take on
more private work to boost their finances.
Opposition
politicians last night called for an urgent meeting between dentistry
leaders and the Scottish Executive to thrash out their differences
to avert a new crisis in NHS dentistry.
The
Executive published its Dental Action Plan last year with a pledge
to increase the number of dentists working in the NHS by at least
200 by 2008. Ministers said an extra £295 million would
be pumped into dental care over three years. Dentists who showed
they were "committed" to providing NHS care would qualify
for extra cash.
In
November, the deputy health minister, Lewis Macdonald, unveiled
definition of "commitment" - a practice would need to
have at least 500 NHS patients per dentist; 100 of these would
need to be NHS fee-paying adults. In
addition, practices would need an annual turnover of £50,000
or more per dentist to receive the full allowance.
The
definition has caused outrage among dentists. Many say they may
now have to take NHS patients off their lists so they can make
up the money they have lost out on by taking on more private patients.
Robert
Donald, a dentist in Nairn, said: "What they are doing is
going to deny access to thousands and thousands of patients. It
is a tragedy and the blame lies fair and square at the door of
the Executive."
Alan
Harvey, a dentist in the Balornock area of Glasgow, has over 2,000
patients on his list but only 25 who pay NHS fees, the rest being
children or adults exempt from charges, such as those on benefits.
This means he does not qualify for an allowance, worth tens of
thousands of pounds. Dr Harvey described it as "a nightmare."
"It felt like the rug had been pulled out from under me when
I got the letter saying I did not qualify for the grant,"
he said.
Dr
Harvey is now hoping his appeal will be successful and he will
get the extra cash. The Executive insists that there are "mechanisms"
in place to consider dentists who do not meet their definition.
But
the British Dental Association (BDA) said it had been unable to
get these details of how the appeal system works.
Colin
Crawford, a dentist in Oban, said he had 1,100 NHS patients -
including more than 700 children - but did not have 100 fee-payers.
He said that the lack of an allowance may mean cutting NHS patients
by not re-registering them when their current registration expires.
"If we are losing out on this money we may not have any choice
but to not have as many NHS patients on our lists. It is the vulnerable,
the most disadvantaged who are being penalised."
Scottish
children have some of the worst dental health in western Europe.
The Executive's own action plan pointed out that by the age of
three, over 60 per cent of children in deprived areas had dental
disease. And by the time they are five, over 56 per cent of all
Scottish children have dental disease, such as cavities and tooth
decay.
The
Executive said it wanted to turn this around, with 60 per cent
of children having no signs of dental disease by the age of five
by 2010. But Dr Crawford said unless more dentists received the
extra allowances, this target was not going to be met. "I
have a significant number of children who reach the age of 18
with no cavities and that is great. But it takes a long time to
achieve this kind of preventative care and children in the future
may not get access to that."
Andrew
Lamb, the BDA's director for Scotland, said practices were going
to have to look at their finances and maybe look at other ways
to fund their business. He said they were concerned that the Executive
was failing to recognise that large numbers of practices were
seeing large numbers of NHS patients but were still not deemed
to be committed. "They
are having to make business decisions based on having a balance
between NHS and private patients. If they do not get the extra
funding they may have to take NHS patients off their lists to
be able to take on more private patients," he said. "This
is not about putting more money in dentists pockets. It is about
putting more care into patient's mouths."
Opposition
politicians last night called for action from the Scottish Executive.
SNP Shadow Health Minister Shona Robison MSP said: "The comments
of these dentists show that the Labour and Lib Dem government
and the BDA must get back round the negotiating table to thrash
out their differences. As
well as creating more training places for dental students in Scotland,
government must do more to make the NHS more attractive to present
and prospective dentists before Scotland loses more NHS dentists
to the private sector."
Scottish
Conservative health spokeswoman Nanette Milne said that dentists
should receive the allowances for the NHS work they carry out.
"The Executive have been at loggerheads with dentists for
well over a year and need to reach an agreement. They are not
going to increase access in the NHS by doing this," she said.
A
Scottish Executive spokesman said: "We have consistently
said that we are happy to consider representations from practices
that consider they have justifiable reasons for not meeting the
full NHS commitment criteria. This
would include those in deprived areas where the vast majority
of adult patients are entitled to free dental care."
He
said a number of dentists had already appealed and their cases
are being considered "as a matter of urgency. I don't make
money out of my patients."
DENTIST
Robert Donald is having uncomfortable conversations with his accountant
about how many NHS patients he will have to lose for the sake
of his finances. Dr Donald, who works in Nairn, said there was
"every likelihood" he would have to tell many of his
1,000 NHS patients, including 700 children, that they could no
longer access NHS care at his surgery.
The
reason? He is not defined as being "committed" to the
NHS and so receives none of the extra cash being handed out by
the Executive. Not
only does he not have 100 NHS fee-paying adults, he also fails
to meet the £50,000 turnover target.
"I
don't make money out of my patients," he said. "I prevent
them from having problems which would mean they'd have to have
expensive treatment.
I am penalised for doing this because as a result I don't meet
the £50,000 turnover because I am not carrying out as many
expensive procedures."
Dr
Donald said Lewis Macdonald, the deputy health minister, had to
reconsider the "flawed" definition of commitment. "If
the Executive don't back down and don't reconsider, they will
force me and my patients out of the health service. I have got
over 1,000 NHS patients and I have been looking after them for
21 years. Now a minister who has only been in his position for
about six months is telling me I am not committed to the NHS."
Dr
Donald, who also has 600 private patients on his books, said his
surgery was a business and if he did not make a profit, he would
go bankrupt. He said as a result he may have to stop treating
as many NHS patients, to make room for more of those who can pay
privately.
"It
depends on what the minister does. I am discussing with my accountant
before deciding what I will have to do. What will happen is that
access will become more difficult. Dentists
will be reducing their NHS commitment, not increasing it. I am
hoping that the minister will change his mind for the sake of
my patients." Dr
Donald added: "The money has to come from somewhere and if
it does not come from the government then it is going to have
to come from patients."
Why
new arrangement may take a bite out of practitioners' earnings
Q:
Why are dentists saying they may have to axe NHS patients from
their lists?
A:
They say that if they do not qualify for the extra money being
offered by the Executive, they will have to rethink the funding
balance of their practices. This could mean getting rid of NHS
patients to make more room for private ones.
Q:
Why do some dentists not qualify for the allowances?
A:
The Executive says only dentists who are "committed"
to the NHS will benefit.
Q:
How does the Executive define NHS commitment?
A:
It says that dentists should have at least 500 NHS patients, including
100 NHS fee-paying adults. It also says each dentist should have
annual earnings of at least £50,000 to qualify for 100 per
cent of the new allowances. But the British Dental Association
says that the definition is flawed and needs to be changed.
Q:
Why is the Executive so concerned about dentists having NHS fee-paying
adults?
A:
It says that some dentists are de-registering NHS fee-paying patients
to force them to pay higher private rates. By making dentists
have at least 100 NHS fee-paying adults they hope more people
will be able to receive NHS care rather than thinking that going
private is their only option.
Q:
Why can't dentists just take on more fee-payers?
A:
Many practice in areas of high deprivation, where most of the
population is exempt from charges. Others say letting private
patients become fee-paying NHS patients would not make financial
sense.
Q:
Don't dentists get paid for seeing NHS patients anyway?
A:
Yes, they do, but they say the payments they receive per treatment
or for each check-up are not high enough. To make improvements
to their surgeries, update their equipment and provide more preventative
care, they say they must be able to access the additional funding
from the allowances. Otherwise they will be forced to fill the
funding gap by treating more private patients rather than patients
who receive NHS care. Some may have to take bank loans to fund
the changes themselves.
Q:
What do they want?
A:
A sliding scale of allowances taking into account the overall
number of NHS patients, fee-paying or not. They point out that
as it stands, a dentist may be treating thousands of NHS patients,
but if none of them pay towards their care, they will not get
any of the extra cash that is on offer.
Q:
What happens next?
A:
The British Dental Association has written to the Deputy Health
Minister outlining their concerns and asking for the NHS commitment
definition to be changed. The Executive says it will listen, but
it is not clear if there will be a U-turn on the definition
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