SIR – The new Health and Social Care Bill proposes a much more complex NHS structure.
Rather than giving power to local GPs, it creates confusion about individual bodies’ roles and responsibilities, as well as a crisis of accountability.
It removes the statutory duty to provide public health services for children, smoking cessation services, alcohol and drug services and a raft of other crucial services.
It allows hospitals to use nearly half our public beds for private work and allows private companies to cherrypick the easiest cases for treatment.
Despite hollow Government assurances and some cosmetic changes to the Health and Social Care Bill in recent weeks, the reality is that its main purpose – to vastly increase the commercialisation of the NHS – remains intact. This is not scaremongering.
We can already see the ground opening up to more NHS hospitals being run by the private sector.
For example, George Eliot Hospital in Warwickshire confirmed that it is open to a takeover and is in talks with potential private partners. As has been said before in these letters pages, the Government has no mandate for any of this, from the voters or in the coalition agreement.
NEIL LAURENSON
Worcester Green Party
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