It seems the Conservative Party can always find spare money when it wants to, but not to save our struggling NHS, writes Scott Begbie.
Many years ago, a gas engineer tried to scam me into buying a new boiler I didn’t need.
Our heating system stopped working and, he concluded – after a 30-second glance in the loft – our flue was corroded, the boiler was obsolete, and the only solution was a new one. Oh, and the thousands that would cost.
Not being daft, I got a second opinion, only to be told that, yes, the flue was a bit worn, and a wee section needed replaced to make all well again. That will be under £100 quid, thanks very much.
Now, how do I know Engineer A wasn’t simply mistaken, rather than a rip-off merchant? Because, after his visit, the electric immersion heater suddenly stopped working. The main switch – hidden at the back of the airing cupboard – had been mysteriously turned off.
No heating you can work around for a bit, but no hot water? Well, that will make you think there’s no choice but a new boiler now. Which is why I believe I was being gaslit for nefarious purposes.
What happened to our extra £350 million a week for the NHS?
That boiler scenario keeps popping into my head every time I hear about the dire state of our National Health Service. There is no doubt it is straining at the seams and, in some areas, seems in imminent danger of falling over.
My heart goes out to everyone who works in the NHS. I can only imagine the frustration and anger of being so under-resourced that you can’t properly do what you are built to do – care for people and save lives.
None of this is their fault. It is down to the people who hold the purse strings – the Tory government in Westminster. The lack of proper investment from them bites hard across the four nations, including Scotland.
Our Tory chums insist there is simply not enough cash to solve our health service problems. Funny that, because I seem to remember a Brexit bus going around promising an extra £350 million a week for the NHS.
No money for healthcare? Gosh, there was £4 billion spent on unusable PPE at the beginning of the pandemic, provided by Conservative Party chums. The Tories can always find money when they want it.
All the while, the NHS is creaking, groaning and cutting out like a gas boiler on the blink, and the Tories are shaking their heads and saying it’s beyond repair, rather than just putting in the money needed to fix it.
There’s the end game – the ultimate right-wing Tory dream of dismantling the NHS for profit, just like they have with every other asset we the people used to own
It is the equivalent of flipping the immersion switch to make people think there’s no choice but to start looking at other ways to fund the NHS. To bring in other revenue sources. To privatise it.
There’s the end game – the ultimate right-wing Tory dream of dismantling the NHS for profit, just like they have with every other asset we the people used to own, from steel to railways.
Of course, no government in its right mind would sell off the crown jewels of the NHS. But, no government would deliberately ruin the economy for the sake of libertarian dogma. And this one did. Some of those who went along with that are still in power.
Of course, health care is devolved and Humza Yousaf is getting pelters for its parlous state in Scotland. But Holyrood can only spend the money Westminster deigns to give for health care. Every other devolved nation is screaming at the lack of funds and the health service in England is as much on its knees – if not more so – than north of the border. We don’t need finger pointing and ‘what abootery’. We need Westminster to stop coughing about ‘no money’ and open the coffers instead.
If you do anything this year, anything at all, take a stand and make your voice heard. Tell the government to stop gaslighting us, and give the NHS the money it needs, not just to survive, but to thrive.
Scott Begbie is entertainment editor for The Press & Journal and Evening Express
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