West of Centre

Notwithstanding the current involvement of Gordon Brown in the current political debate surrounding the Scottish Referendum vote, it is customary for former prime ministers of the United Kingdom to fade gracefully in to the background and make way for the new breed. Margaret Thatcher, Edward Heath, Jim Callaghan and Harold Wilson all achieved this simple task without too much fuss. John Major occasionally interjects with an opinion but usually long after the boat has left the harbour. Tony Blair alone seems quite oblivious to this unspoken rule of British political life. An eleventh year leading the country was quite enough for Lady Thatcher when her party dispensed with her services. It seems that Tony Blair can't get enough of power. He is beginning to come across as one of those computer viruses which just won't go away once it has been granted access. We begin to rue the day we ever clicked the "yes" button. The virus invades our entire system and seems ubiquito...

Clearly worried about the recent levels of attention being paid to him, Richard Dawkins has just surpassed himself in an attempt to regain the spotlight. He has now turned his attention to fairy tales and warned of the danger of inflicting them on children because they “inculcate a view of the world which includes supernaturalism”. He urges us to promote a sense of scepticism in our children presumably so that they can become more like him. I was listening to a radio show yesterday in which a man phoned in to explain the difference between a doubting Thomas and a sceptic. A doubting Thomas will believe what you are saying if you can just show him an example for him to see with his own eyes whereas a sceptic is someone who still won’t believe you even when you have shown him. Dawkins sits firmly in the camp of the latter. For a seemingly educated man, his comments do him no credit. This is the same man whose considerable imagination has led to him proposing highly provocative theor...

As the scale of the crisis in the NHS in Wales becomes ever more apparent, the First Minister of the Welsh Assembly has been forced to concede that Wales can’t cope in its existing format. Rather than continue to witness the needless spectacle of Welsh patients dying as they await major surgery on home soil, the First Minister has finally come down on the side of common sense. He would rather see Welsh patients treated over the border in England than have to wait as happens all too often under the current format. Border? That is as much a nonsense term now as it was in 1997 before the devolution vote. In practical terms, there is no border between Wales and England. There are road signs proclaiming a physical demarcation but they are just signs. The need for autonomy sometimes makes us lose sight of reality. A cultural border is fine as long as it doesn’t impinge on the health, education and employment of those living on the wrong side of it. Ironically, it has also just been announce...

It is rare in the UK for the majority to agree on something. Whatever your political persuasion, it is now widely accepted that the NHS needs to reform itself in order to continue as a free service for all. I accept that use of the word free is somewhat spurious given that the majority still have to pay just to park when they get there. Some would also argue that it isn’t free anyway because we all pay for it through taxation. Setting aside these arguments, my basic point remains. As I write, I can arrange an appointment with my GP or present to my local casualty department and be seen by a trained doctor. The new man at the head of the world’s second biggest employer is Simon Stevens. Few would envy his task. I can’t imagine a more challenging time for anyone to be taking over the helm of the NHS in the UK. Obesity levels in the under 20s continue to rise as do their poor health outcomes in later life. People are living longer due to major improvements in drug treatments and medica...

We have just experienced a most illuminating week. In the UK, the press is awash with praise for Nigel Farage and his UK Independence Party. Many of our European partners followed suit and opted for similarly Eurosceptic candidates to represent them in the much maligned European Parliament in Brussels. The new European Parliament looks set to be dominated by various coalitions of predominantly Eurosceptic members whose raison d’etre is to cancel their country’s membership of the EU or, at the very least, seek meaningful reform. This is hardly good news for an organisation which is still grappling with the reality that many of it’s members remain on the brink of financial bankruptcy. It would be misleading to leave things there though. In the UK, over two thirds of eligible voters didn’t bother to vote. So in spite of UKIP gaining nearly 30% of the votes cast, more than 66% of eligible votes weren’t even cast. This is hardly a resounding victory. This is the danger of small voter t...

            Three people making the news today all share something in common. All three have spoken out against something and a majority of people agree with them. It begs the question why their respective stances have become headlines in the first place.              In a refreshing departure from recent British political practice, the Home Secretary, Theresa May, yesterday bucked the trend by making an announcement without first leaking it’s contents to the press. For this act alone, she is to be applauded. Addressing the Police Federation in Bournemouth yesterday, the Home Secretary informed them that funding to their organisation would end in August. She also shared with their conference a few home truths which had underpinned her decision. Her speech was long overdue for an organisation which has become synonymous with the worst aspects of modern public life in Britain. She reminded them of their role in the Hillsb...

As we continue to drown under a tsunami of over-regulation, I was horrified to read proposals to regulate the food industry like the tobacco industry.  There is a basic problem in this approach. Regulation only has a limited worth. We have seemingly regulated the way in which MPs claim their expenses. We have also aspired to regulate the banks in the wake of the credit crunch which so nearly brought this country to bankruptcy. The regulation of the tobacco industry is a cautionary tale of what happens when the state attempts to interfere with freedom of choice. For all the regulation and increased taxation, the incidence of new smokers taking up the habit has barely changed. The prevalence of people smoking as a proportion of the population has gradually dropped but not by nearly as much as originally intended. It proves that people will make their own minds up and make their own choices accordingly. The best way to effect a change at the end of the pipeline is to concentrate ou...