Save the NHS... again.

[Flex Your Head]

Protect the NHS from being sold out to corporate interests under the secret Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) deal.

As it stands, TTIP would give US corporations unprecedented access to the NHS and irrevocably cement the sell-out of the NHS to corporate interests.

If TTIP goes ahead, the NHS will be at the mercy of corporate interests and investors who place their own profits over the health of the patients.

TTIP also includes provisions that mean corporations can sue governments in secret back-room deals if governments introduce initiatives (including public health regulation) that could reduce a company’s profits.
Under similar regulations, tobacco giant Philip Morris is currently suing the Australian governments for billions of dollars for a new public health law that restricts the sale of cigarettes.

TTIP in effect means that we give corporate interests unlimited access to our health care but make it impossible for national governments to affect legislation on protecting our health. Corporations’ greed for profit and not the public interest would dictate public health policy under TTIP.

How can politicians give away our most important right: right to free and universal healthcare?

There is a simple solution: David Cameron could just demand that no mention of the health services should be made in TTIP -- as the British Medical Association (BMA) has demanded.

Healthcare is an issue we feel extremely strongly about, no matter our political affiliations. David Cameron: publicly announce that the NHS will be exempt from the TTIP negotiations.

Sign up here:

http://action.sumofus.org/a/nhs-ttip/2/8/?akid=6590.766182.IC9R0g&rd=1&sub=fwd&t=2

 

[RexCathedra]

Heed ye the Gospel according to St. Margaret the Thatcher:

All that is, can be bought and sold.
All that cannot be bought and sold, is not.
All that can be bought and sold, must be bought and sold.
All that is bought and sold must be bought and sold at the highest price.
And everything private is better than anything public.

For this is the whole of the law, and the prophets.
The rest is commentary.

Here endeth the lesson

 

[Hatterlovesbrighton]

Can you say it again without the spin. What exactly is going to change?

 

[sir albion]

Can you say it again without the spin. What exactly is going to change?

Profits will go to the shareholders and the service will be dogshite,energy firms and the railways are all whats wrong with privatisation.

Must not happen....The NHS is unique and a rare privilege

 

[Westdene Seagull]

The simple way of preventing this affecting the UK is to get out of the EU. Job done.

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

The simple way of preventing this affecting the UK is to get out of the EU. Job done.

So this has nothing to do with the Conservatives wanting to privatise the NHS through the back door ?

 

[Westdene Seagull]

So this has nothing to do with the Conservatives wanting to privatise the NHS through the back door ?

Nope - it's a trade deal between the US and the EU. It could affect the NHS but it has nothing to do with privatising it.

 

[Titanic]

Profits will go to the shareholders and the service will be dogshite,energy firms and the railways are all whats wrong with privatisation.

Must not happen....The NHS is unique and a rare privilege

Is this anything like New Labour's scandalous PFI hospitals?

 

[Flex Your Head]

Stuff party politics, the NHS needs an exemption from this. At the risk of repeating myself:

TTIP also includes provisions that mean corporations can sue governments in secret back-room deals if governments introduce initiatives (including public health regulation) that could reduce a company’s profits.

Under similar regulations, tobacco giant Philip Morris is currently suing the Australian governments for billions of dollars for a new public health law that restricts the sale of cigarettes.

 

[Westdene Seagull]

Stuff party politics, the NHS needs an exemption from this. At the risk of repeating myself:

TTIP also includes provisions that mean corporations can sue governments in secret back-room deals if governments introduce initiatives (including public health regulation) that could reduce a company’s profits.

Under similar regulations, tobacco giant Philip Morris is currently suing the Australian governments for billions of dollars for a new public health law that restricts the sale of cigarettes.

Every UK government organisation needs exemption from TTIP but it's NOT privatising the NHS, that's a mis-representation of TTIP.

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

Nope - it's a trade deal between the US and the EU. It could affect the NHS but it has nothing to do with privatising it.

So we could opt out like France and Germany will ?

 

[Creaky]

The proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership certainly proposes the inclusion of the Investor State Dispute Settlement, (ISDS), system. There has been a lot of hype about this recently with the TTIP proposal despite it having been used for decades quite successfully.

As I understand it this is a system to offer some protection to states and corporations who agree to invest in a country. Country A agrees a trade treaty with country B and under terms of this treaty a corporation in Country A makes an investment in Country B.

If country B breaches the treaty then without ISDS the only thing those corporations who have made the investment could do would be to sue country B through the courts of that country - hardly a just or realistic option.


ISDS is an international arbitration system whose decision is binding on both parties - like all arbitration systems the fact that a case is going to be arbitrated is not kept secret nor is this decision of the panel - what is kept 'secret' is the actual hearing itself.

Some say such a system is necessary to encourage investment and to protect the investor - others that it can overide a change of policy the country receiving the investment may wish to make.

I'm on the fence over whether the UK should make such trade agreements.

Take two scenarios - the current arbitration case between Philip Morris and Australia - in simple terms Philip Morris made a large investment in order to make tobacco products and are arguing that Australias decision to enforce plain packaging for cigarettes is in breach of the treaty under which this investment was made.

I imagine there will be little sympathy for the investor in this case where a country is changing its regulations for health reasons.

But then there is the case where Occidental invested hundred of millions in Ecuador who when building was completed then revoked Occidental's licence making their investment worthless."

As regards the proposals over the Health Service I think UKIP have shown recently with their upsurge that privatisation of much of the NHS is not something many are worried about.

The following is an extract from the UKIP manifesto for the last General Election

"Over time, UKIP will replace Hospital, Foundation, NHS Care and Ambulance Service Trusts with equivalent franchises


Encourage County Health Boards to put out to tender key NHS services ranging from Long Term Care to local hospitals and GP surgeries. This will be done by franchising key services - run on a fixed budget - to charitable associations, not-for-profit and profit-making private companies, partnerships and individuals. This will bring in private sector efficiency and innovation, while fixed assets, responsibility and direction remain firmly in public hands."

 

[Westdene Seagull]

So we could opt out like France and Germany will ?

I doubt there will be any option to opt out.

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

I doubt there will be any option to opt out.

That wont stop the French and Germans ignoring any EU directives they disagree with.

 

[London Irish]

The privatisation of the NHS is the biggest scandal of our time - it was created after all by all those who gave their blood fighting Hitler. Yet because it's a drip-drip privatisation done stealthily, it's hard to focus opposition to it

 

[sir albion]

Is this anything like New Labour's scandalous PFI hospitals?

Not quiet no....Obviously we need more funding to keep it intact!!!
I suggest we give 15% of all immigrants tax's to the NHS,that should solve the issue.

 

[beorhthelm]

the problem with copy and pasting something, as you have done here, is it utterly fails to put any context or understanding around something. TTIP is a trade agreement, it has nothing to do with NHS. it *might* do if a company from the US took on some contract to provide services, and the UK then changed legislation that was contrary to that contract.
"TTIP in effect means that we give corporate interests unlimited access to our health care... " and "If TTIP goes ahead, the NHS will be at the mercy of corporate interests and investors who place their own profits over the health of the patients." are outright lies, as it implies TTIP mandates some form of privatisation occurs, and that this doesnt have any clauses that allow change of policy, when there is nothing of the sort here.