Nursing Counts Campaign

Thank you to everyone who has been in touch with me about this campaign.  I am pleased to support it.

Liberal Democrats believe that when it comes to improving NHS services it is important that we listen to those who work on the front line.  Low staff morale is a big problem in today’s NHS because many people feel they have not been listened to.  We believe that professionals like nurses, are best placed to know the day-to-day needs of patients and the hour by hour demands on staff.

We will give power back to nurses by giving them control over budgets and greater responsibility for running their own wards and units.  Ward sisters and charge nurses are vital to hospital nursing and ensuring high quality patient care.  Lead nurses should have responsibility for ensuring that wards are clean, patients are being fed and looked after and that staffing levels and equipment is up to scratch.

We will also give every NHS staff members that chance to vote on whether their hospital trust should become a wholly owned employee trust.  NHS staff members would be trustees of their hospital and its assets for future generations.  As co-owners, they would have greater control over the services they provide and shape the hospital’s future.

As part of our plans to radically decentralise the NHS, we are proposing elected health boards.  Under this system it would no longer be appropriate to retain Strategic Health Authorities in their current form.  This would mean that responsibility for planning tertiary services such as specialist medical units which cannot be provided in every area would move to a new light touch regional body made up of representation from local health boards.  This board would also be responsible for staff training, education and workforce planning.

The NHS is one of this country’s greatest achievements, but it has become far too focussed on treating diseases rather than preventing them.  While our nation’s health should be improving, alcohol, smoking, obesity, bad diets and lack of exercise means that for many it is getting worse.  The long term costs of us failing to tackle this public health issue would be enormous.  We will encourage the NHS to work with local communities to help tackle the public health problems and provide facilities and services to help people improve their health.

We also want to expand access to programmes of screening for cancer and other chronic illnesses.  We will ensure that public health spending isn’t cut in the years to come by making savings elsewhere in the NHS and recycling the money to this vital element of care.

Three out of every five people aged over 60 in England have a long term condition.  We believe that in a fair society, people suffering from long-term conditions should know that they can rely on the NHS.   Whilst the NHS has received high investment over recent years, we believe that too much has been consumed by bureaucracy at the expense of frontline services.  To ensure that frontline funding is maintained in the current tough economic climate, we will cut waste on quangos, bureaucrats and top-level pay and re-invest every penny to protect services that are under pressure.  These include mental health provision, cancer, maternity services and dementia care.

British Pubs and British Beer

I have been approached to support pubs and British beer.

Beer is not my personal tipple of choice, but I have friends who enjoy a good beer and are particularly partial to something special from an independent brewer.   Having said that, I did try some specialist ale recently which was very tasty.

I recognise the role that a good local pub plays in a community and I do enjoy a traditional British pub with a cosy atmosphere.  Lib Dems have always been concerned that tax rises on beer will harm pubs which are already struggling in difficult economic circumstances.  They will also damage smaller independent beer breweries.   My party tabled an amendment in 2009 to scrap the 2 per cent rise on beer tax and signed a parliamentary motion which called on the Chancellor to use the November pre-budget statement to reverse the 8 per cent beer duty increase.

Having said all that, I am concerned about excessive alcohol consumption and the impact it is having on the heath of individuals and behaviour in pubic places.   I want to see a broader and more intelligent response to binge drinking culture and an increased public debate about the role alcohol plays in our society.    There are many people who would not put themselves into the ‘binge drinking’ category, but who are consuming unhealthy levels of alcohol.  I think we must change our relationship with alcohol.