To reckon that Reform will win the next election, and to be utterly terrified about it? 😪

Goodness, why so craven about their political opinions, surely it loses all meaning if you don't demonstrate the courage of your convictions?

And Reform are going to do that are they- is someone going to come along and pop your balloon of delusion!

people choose what services they use supplied by private companies all of which will be competing for business

You'd think that privatisation would improve efficiency through market competition, but does that ever happen in practice? In my experience, private healthcare companies charge the maximum they think the market will bear. Also, don't forget that an insurance-based (or hybrid) system, requires extra layers of administration and extra middle-men in the form of insurance companies.

Do you think private fertility clinics in the UK offer good value for money? After all there are plenty of them, which should keep prices affordable, right?

What about private dental practices? At my local practice, a scale and polish by a dental nurse costs £85 and they still don't have any appointments available until June!

Do you think that vet practices in the UK offer reasonable rates? These days, many owners have pet insurance (and some insurers pay the vet directly), so the combination of market competition and the expert negotiation offered by insurance companies ought to keep prices low. But does it?

US private healthcare companies have been desperate for years to run the NHS. They wouldn't be so keen if there weren't enormous profits to be made.

So the public have two choices, a partly privatised health system where people choose what services they use supplied by private companies all of which will be competing for business or give the NHS extra money with no accountability to spend even more of tax payers money. Why do you think its fair to raise the publics taxes to provide a service which is failing and generally unavailable? I don't see an improvement plan there. NHS managers shouldn't be allowed to have budgets. They've proved time and again that they can't balance their books because money has been used irresponsibly to the detrement of patients. Their is a vast difference between NHS and European hospitals and its not availability of care its the fact they are well run and deal with inefficiency, NHS can't do that.

Where did I say it was about resources, equipment and staff?. So you attribute those extra staff members to rises in NI do you? You know it was a direct result of government action? Its about accountability and culture change, what its not about is resources, equipment and staff. Great that those patients benefitted from extra funding which could have come from a multitude of sources, now multiply that benefit by 100 times as that's what's needed throughout the NHS to cut waiting lists across the country.

If one health service spends £6,000 per person per year and another spends £9,000, you'd reasonably expect the second health service to offer more. The fact that one system is funded through taxation and the other is funded through a hybrid system shouldn't make much difference. Either way, the public pays.

It's virtually impossible to compare the efficiency of the two systems when their budgets are so different.

Really? let me give you an example, real life, first hand....

My DD dept had a waiting list of 22 weeks, from discharge to getting therapy (for Stroke)
After Reeves NI hikes, they got funding for 3 more staff, those 3 extra people have bought waiting lists down from 22 weeks to less than 4 weeks.

Its a very intensive 1 to 1 process, sometimes 2 to 1, where the patient has v limited mobility, their work gets people moving, back to work, back into the community.
Speed after hospital discharge is vital.

So tell me again its not about resources, equipment and staff?

Absolutely correct it is like comparing apples and oranges, so why do people do that? We don't have a partially privately funded health system like France, Netherlands so blaming inefficiency in our NHS on not having the same funds available as partially private health services is rediculous. Equally throwing taxpayers money at a public service without expecting fundamental change is rediculous.

It'll be rough, but the way they've courted trussonomics so far, even if they win, it won't be long until they sabotage themselves out of no.10. Lettuce lifespan and all that.

That being said, I will admit daft.ie HAS been getting an unusual amount of traffic from my IP.

If we actually try funding the NHS to same per capita level as France, the Netherlands or Germany and its performance doesn't significantly improve, then fair enough, start looking at alternative systems.

But at the moment we're comparing apples and oranges.

Point me to where I said that.

Throwing more money at NHS will not fix it. It needs a culture change and let's be honest, Labour are doing exactly the same as the Tories did. Voting for the same thing over and over again and expecting radical change is madness.

Absolute nonsense, where's your proof? Just spouting propaganda that suits your narrative. You haven't addressed any of the points I've made just general rhetoric without facts. Try reading what I've written and form a logical fact based argument to support your view of what you want to believe. People who adopt the approach you've demonstrated above are the reason this country is a mess, too many people are jumping on a bandwagon without understanding the implications of what they are saying/doing. Fed up of listening to Reform is this or that, supply some facts to support your claims.

So your dream is to replicate some ICE style force here in the UK, I can't believe you're British to think that such a violent direction is wanted or needed.

Its 6 months instead of 2 years, bringing fwd isn't going to help? & it will only affect hose employers who sack unfairly, not for properly done redundancies.

On NI, yes will have an effect but whats the alternative? you'd need to raise income tax by about 5% to get the same money and we have huge financial commitments... PO and Blood Scandals, NHS, Defence, SENDs and an unfunded NI cut by the Tories, thats £11billion alone.

UK companies are doing very well, record profitability, but a 5% rise in income tax would have destroyed consumer confidence and led to many more claiming in work benefits,

It's a shitshow, partly because of the takeover of billionaire tech bros and MAGA.

But if you vote Reform you'll get the UK version of Davos. Based on the fact that Brexit was an isolationist strategy that we are now all paying for, because Farage has the same views on race as Elon and Trump, uses the same race baiting, and because he's a Trump admirer who wants what Trump has. And where they have beem voted in, its been a disaster.

I don't know who I'll vote for yet but its not going to be Elon/Trump supporters Reform thats for sure as I don't want to see a Minneapolis here, and you'llalways get that kind of situation if your image relies on dividing people and making people fear eachother.

Yes I think it’s pretty clear - obviously not ‘everyone’ and obviously there will not be an actual bloodbath. I am just genuinely concerned for people this year and do hope they are able to bring the changes forward.

I think its more the ‘everyone’ will be fired or broke comment

obviously thats not the case

To explain - the increasing employment costs for employers together with uncapped damages for unfair dismissal and reduced qualifying period for unfair dismissal (coming in 2027) mean a lot of pressure. They would have been better to bring in the unfair dismissal changes this year so that employers do not seek to fire this year before the changes come in. That would be worth raising with an MP. Unfair dismissal case law will be helpful to employers so they shouldn’t panic but I know many are.

Never mind facts and statistics then.

So no one will be fired under Reform, none under the Tories... only happens under Labour.
People lose their jobs constantly, even in boom times, unemployment stabilised last quarter at 5.1%

Some industries are recruiting like there is no tomorrow, Babcock near me, need 4000 extra staff, in Plymouth, Bristol and Rosyth.

900 of them are graduate/apprentice rolls.

I’m afraid when it comes to being being fired this year it is true. I work in an area where I see this and advise on this on a daily basis. It is very worrying.

Thats simply not true.

Business profits across most sectors are up, substantially & growth is higher over the last 18months, than the 18months prior to the last GE, under the Tories.

Unemployment is up but still below historic long term levels and much is because of AI.

I think Labour have made some big screw ups but to say they have or will wreck the economy is untrue.

If people vote Reform, we will get a Reform Govt, its complacent to say otherwise BUT their popularity is falling and polling yesterday showed Starmer is 2nd behind Farage (by 4%) on trust issues and doing what is best for the UK, Badenoch was nowhere.

Agree. I just don’t want more of this current government. Everyone will be fired or completely broke by the end of it. Watch for the bloodbath this year as employers face the reality of the rising costs and new employment laws. Be nice to your managers.

Yes, but in the meantime, they're poisoning the political debate. Populists are really like bad magicians: they hypnotise you with a big flag as they take everything else from you.
Ask recovering MAGA voters, or Russians...