Westminstenders: Silly Season

[RedToothBrush]

It's that time of year again when politicians seem to completely lose their marbles in order to impress the faithful. And it is beginning to feel like conference season is increasingly an exercise in religious ferver to the party rather than considering what's in the best interests of the whole country.

Labour have got off to a good start before their conference opens, by almost starting complete melt down.

The Tories have promised to break from convention and try and over shadow the others, so that's something to look forward to.

And early this week we have the supreme Court ruling which could, regardless of which direction it swings, have massive ramifications for our democracy.

Big week ahead.

I find this discussion about making life better for everyone interesting- especially making the public £ go further...... I am sorry If i have missed this - but no-one seems to be suggesting means testing services?
NZ - tax is less, primary healthcare is means tested (all under 12's free) - things like cancer treatment is covered for everyone, though some treatments are not available on the public purse (same as here). Super not means tested (which is a huge bug bear of mine - it should be)...... but whereas in Nz above average income think nothing of paying for their GP - whereas here, wealthy friends complain about not being able to get a GP appointment , but refuse to even consider going private.
I know it would probably be hugely unpopular- but I don't understand why on threads such as these it's not discussed? It becomes a tax more- why not just provide less?
Just to add I believe passionately that there needs to be a social safety net.

From The Mogg on Twitter:

"Congratulations to Mr Corbyn who, when assailed from every side, is returning to his Eurosceptic principles. In the past he enthusiastically voted with Bill Cash on all key EU matters."

@wheresmymojo I joined the Labour party in 1968 and we were all comrades then. I haven't been active at local level for many years, but I think comrades has always been used. I am happy to be corrected by more recent activists though. 😊

Exactly, Louise

However, even those with no family to inherit want to hang on to their assets wrt refusing paid care in their own home

• "hanging on to their own money"

and also desperately want to stay in their own home rather than communal living with strangers, limited choice of food etc

Even those without assets to hang onto

My late mum kept refusing a care home, or even day care

• all of which I would have paid for, since she has v few assets - when I was on my knees trying to care for her and couldn't do so properly

I had rashly agreed when she was about 30 years ago - before I knew any statistics on dementia - really never to put her in a home
and I felt constrained morally by that promise - for far longer than was wise

Younger Westministenders:
Do NOT make my mistake and make such rash promises

However, the care home and day care also refused to take her while she was still able to articulate that she wanted to go home
I actually booked her for day care, which she enjoyed in the early days, but later she became so agitated, wanting to "escape" that they said they could no longer accept her

How's this for silly season? I was clearing out a pile of old Private Eye magazines and came across this one from April 2013

LouiseCollins28 - I sympathise with the dilemma. It's a difficult time

Fortunately my dad is pragmatic so I know it will never be an issue with him.

MIL, on the other hand.....

It's easy for me as the outsider to see what needs to be done (in the best interests of the individual needing care) but it's not my battle, so I try and keep out of it and just try to give dh the necessary emotional support. At least he doesn't expect me to get involved in visiting/providing care - since he is only do so reluctantly himself, to support (nice) SIL.

I'm not arguing against it as I'd have to see research/facts/etc to form an opinion but the usual arguments against means testing are:

• It can cost more to run the administrative burden of means testing than is saved by the means testing

• It undermines motivation to strive to do better if you aren't that much better off because of various things kicking in to be paid for which were otherwise free when you earned a bit less

"When did Labour start calling each other Comrade?"

mojo I remember this from the 1970s (I was never a member of any party)
Especially the party conference on the telly

Corbyn / Labour really isn't radical or new - he's a 1970s throwback

In Wales the capital limit for paying for the cost of residential are was raised to £50000.00 earlier this year.

I don't recall it being used in the New Labour years?

That being said I wouldn't have been watching the party conference speeches then but it doesn't sound like something Blair would've said...?

Agree totally with all that BigChoc. This certainly does not affect only those who have “means” or “savings” or however one chooses to describe them. The desparation to continue living in their own home is certainly a feeling I can idenify from our situation.

Poll...

Westminster voting intention
... if held after the UK revokes Article 50 and remains in the EU after a period of extension beyond 31 Oct:

LAB: 26%
BREX: 22%
CON: 20%
LDEM: 20%
GRN: 6%

via @ComRes, 18 - 19 Sep

Westminster voting intention
... if held after the UK has left the EU without a deal on 31 Oct:

CON: 37%
LAB: 26%
LDEM: 18%
BREX: 6%
GRN: 6%

via @ComRes, 18 - 19 Sep

Westminster voting intention
... if held after the deadline for Brexit has been extended beyond 31 Oct:

LAB: 25% (-3)
CON: 22% (-4)
LDEM: 21% (+1)
BREX: 20% (+3)
GRN: 5% (+1)

via @ComRes, 18 - 19 Sep
Chgs. w/ 06 Sep (same Q)

My Supreme Court prediction:

• Prorogation unlawful;
• Remedy and deadline given to comply.

I thinks it's the latter which delayed the judgment.

Let's hope I'm right.

BigChoc - when I was younger, I rashly promised my parents that I would pay for their care in their old age

I did then have to remind them that that was only from official retirement age especially when they took early retirement

As it happens, dad has a decent enough pension, plus, touch wood, is not showing any signs of reduced mental capacity. His mum lived to 89 but had had a tough life. His aunt (his mum's older sister), in Denmark, lived to 102, the only real problem being increasing deafness. Both were as bright as a button right up to the end.

Dad is 82 (I keep thinking 83 ) now, so he has a way to go I don't want my (or any) inheritance any time soon.

MrsL The system we have atm is in effect paid according to income, because the NHS is funded by taxation

Those earning under 35-40k are net "takers" over their lifetime wrt all public services etc
so UK PLC is basically funded by those who are on 40k+ for most of their working lives

Reducing the NHS service to a very basic one is quite possibly where we may go,
especially if the UK ends up much poorer in the next decade or two, after Brexit

So we might see all the fav MN discussion topics about the NHS stopping - or charging full price for -
e.g. IVF or any other fertility treatment, all family planning, tattoo removal, all plastic surgery, any birth options that cost more
Also charging the "hotel cost" - all food
Maybe replacing expensive drugs & procedures, even if they give a better qualoity of life afterwards ...

Might even see it degenerating into not much more than A&E plus very basic childbirth & the simplest operations, plus chemo

The alternative of charging fees for the better off:
The big problem is that, as with social care, it discourages many from seeking help
and hence worsens health

Also, as mojo says, means-testing has high admin costs and could be stressful

My Supreme Court prediction: - Prorogation unlawful;

I hope it goes a lot further and forensically recognises that since the Bill of Rights, "The Monarch" has become "The Government" and the government must consider itself bound by the previous restrictions enjoyed by the Monarch. Which might make constitutional matters a little clearer moving forwards. If the Monarch cannot act unlawfully, then neither can the government. Which seems a fair state of affairs ?

Or will we see a ruling that effectively (re)states l'etat - c'est moi ?

Louise The law on this changed a little while ago, previously social services could argue that their statutory duty was performed if someone with mental capability refused help even if they were at risk. Now their statutory duty requires them to ensure safeguarding even if they have mental capability and refuse help. In practise they will of course try and negotiate but if you have grounds to believe somebody is at risk i.e they have fallen or put themselves at some other risk (my grandmother started a fire by putting her bread in the toaster with the butter and jam on it, which rather undermined her ability to present herself as having less cognitive impairment than she had) then you can advocate with social services for them to meet the safeguarding obligation even if the person is resisting.

Really interesting polls about the different scenarios, Mojo

Obvious why the Tories are desperate for No Deal on 31 October
They would probably get a landslide and also annihilate the BXP

Other polls have also shown this tendency, but not so extreme - poll variation, or voters getting more impactient ?

LDems always in the 18 - 21% range
but Con, Lab & BXP vary wildly according to what happens wrt Brexit 🤔

the latter 3 parties - possibly not the LDems - will have their own private polls on this sort of thing
I wonder if they get similar results to these

Those voting intentions don't take no deal effect into account as it's only 'Project Fear' for now. Things may change!

NHS going titsup in the SW today

www.theregister.co.uk/2019/09/23/torbay/

Torbay & South Devon NHS has declared a state of emergency of the tech kind, warning that a “critical IT systems failure” has forced it to cancel all scheduled routine surgery and outpatients appointments.

(contd)

Obvious why the Tories are desperate for No Deal on 31 October They would probably get a landslide and also annihilate the BXP

It would be as historic a landslide as they got in 2017, when 24 hours before the election the only story was whether they'd get 50 or 100 seat majority.

Thomas Cook was nationalised in 1948 and privatised in 1972
it has never kept up with the times
and the leveraged buyouts were its death knell
sad but utterly predictable

Getting the parties new policies a little confused.

We are now going to be working until 75 but will now get basic care help with dressing, meals etc from 65? Does this mean someone will come and help us get breakfast and get ready for work for a decade or so?
(Quite frankly that would really help me now.)