Andy Burnham
The political battle over A&E will get nastier before the problem is solved
Today’s row about Accident and Emergency has little to do with the issue itself, and far more about one party trying to prove a point about the other. Those rows… Continue reading
35 Comments
Jeremy Hunt attacks Labour for A&E crisis
Andy Burnham summoned Jeremy Hunt to the Commons this afternoon for a shouty hour about who loves the NHS more. The Health Secretary’s answer to Labour’s urgent question on the… Continue reading
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The question Labour won’t even consider on the NHS
Labour’s new independent commission on health and social care aims to draw up plans on bringing together health services and social care so that the NHS can be financially sustainable.… Continue reading
9 Comments Mid-Staffs scandal: The Tories must beware focusing solely on Andy Burnham
MPs were debating accountability in the NHS following the Mid-Staffs scandal today, and as part of that, the argument about who – if anyone – should be held responsible continues… Continue reading
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Tories set Labour in their crosshairs over Mid-Staffs
After today’s slightly confusing PMQs line from the Prime Minister about unidentified ‘people’ who ‘should be thinking of their positions’ after the Mid-Staffs scandal, ministers and loyal backbenchers have gone… Continue reading
45 Comments
Solve childhood obesity with nudging, not nannying
Whilst I have been a vocal supporter in Parliament of the need to tackle childhood obesity, I am by no means a shining example. My childhood was fuelled by sugar… Continue reading
30 Comments
Let Them Eat Gruel: The Government-Health-Security Complex Invades Your Kitchen - Spectator Blogs
Addressing the American people for the final time as President, Dwight Eisenhower warned that: This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the… Continue reading
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Don’t ban Frosties: teach children the life skills they need to make choices
What a very sensible idea from a group of more than 200 MPs in today’s FT: teach children about personal finance. The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Financial Education for Young… Continue reading
65 Comments
The Spectator Parliamentarian of the Year Awards
The Spectator’s Parliamentarian of the Year awards are being held this afternoon at the Savoy Hotel. In total 14 awards were presented by Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Education,… Continue reading
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Ed Miliband hints at realism on NHS reforms
There’s a great temptation for an opposition leader to give answers praising motherhood and apple pie when taking part in a Q&A with members of the public. Especially when that… Continue reading
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The doctors’ strike
No public sector strike is easy to sell to the public. I recently did a stint of jury service and witnessed the chaos caused by court staff, members of the… Continue reading
66 Comments
Lib-Lab bonding over legal aid
The Legal Aid Bill limps back to the Commons this afternoon, having had a rough ride through the upper chamber where the Lords inflicted 11 defeats on the government. And… Continue reading
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Why Lansley might hang on
Perhaps, the biggest question about the post-Olympics reshuffle is what happens to Andrew Lansley. In an interview with The Times (£) today, he makes it abundantly clear that he expects… Continue reading
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Lansley has won, in a way
At two thirty this afternoon, the Deputy Speaker announced to the House of Commons that the Queen had granted Royal Assent to the Health and Social Care Act. It seemed… Continue reading
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Clegg reassures his party about the Health Bill
Lib Dem Spring conference is turning out as the leadership would have wished. The support of Shirley Williams for the Health Bill seems to have been enough to reassure delegates… Continue reading
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The Lib Dems are being urged leftwards
If you didn’t know that it’s the Lib Dem spring conference this weekend, then you will after a quick rustle around the political pages. The yellow bird of liberty is… Continue reading
30 Comments
Where ‘constructive engagement’ could become destructive
Those ‘cross-party talks’ over social care haven’t started quite yet, but the positioning has already begun in earnest. In response to a letter by a gaggle of experts in today’s… Continue reading
18 CommentsLabour start attacking the NHS reforms – but did they need to?
So, the Labour Party has finally woken up to the idea that there might be some mileage in opposing the Government’s health reforms. Throughout much of this year a predictable… Continue reading
18 CommentsA revealing episode
The row about which email account special advisers use for which emails is, I suspect, of very little interest to anyone outside SW1. But today’s FT story certainly has set the… Continue reading
8 CommentsGove reaffirms his faith in free schools
Invigorating, that’s probably the best word for Policy Exchange’s event on free schools this morning. Right from Sir Michael Wilshaw’s opening address — which set out the reasons why he,… Continue reading
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