Welsh NHS Cross Party Commission Falls at First Fence.

Welll once again I have sen the best f the NHS. Having my OP last Friday and after having round the clock care returned home on Tuesday to carry on the recovery process and I would like to thank all the staff of B4 and T4 wards (Neurological ) from the Surgeon  down to the ward cleaners for their care .

So it is a coincidence that my first Blog  since leaving Hospital will be on  the fact that  the  proposed commission looking into the future of the NHS (something I have advocated in the past  is now looking unlikely to happen after Plaid Cymru joined the Welsh Conservatives in saying they would not take part.
Plaid’s Elin Jones said it was not the right time to set up such a “political” commission.

According to the Wasting Mule to the Welsh Liberal Democrat leader La Pasionaria (Kirsty Williams) who  had come up with the idea for the cross-party probe and had won support from Welsh Government health minister Mark Drakeford and First Minister Carwyn Jones.p lans for a commission were revealed in February, when the Welsh Health Minister Mark Drakeford wrote to the Lib Dem leader setting out an agreement in principle.


Confirming the offer of a commission at the time, Mr Drakeford said:

 "Discussions about the long-term future of the Welsh NHS should sit outside the knockabout of day-to-day party politics.

The proposal would have seen a year-long cross-party investigation into how the NHS in Wales could be improved. and since we will be having an election next year for the Assembly it would be odd if nee of the major devolved issues  which even now is still party of the Westminster campaign of all the parties here in Waled would not loom large in the 2016 assembly Elections.

Since the state of the Welsh NHS  has been one of the Welsh LibDems  major bugbears and La Pasionaria  has proved to be one of most effective AMs on the subject it does seem odd that she seemed eager to surrender one of her most potent themes.

She ssaid

: "Time and time again both Plaid and the Tories have shown they are more interested in putting politics first,rather than patients.
“This is disappointing as it was a real chance to take some forward steps in improving our NHS for staff and patients alike."

It is Ironic however that today  the Lib Dems Blog Subordinate Central has AM Aled  Roberts commuting on Breast Cancer  care. at Ysbyty Glan Llwyd.

 

In response a Welsh Government source said: “It now appears there is no chance of a cross-party commission. and appeared to place the blame for the collapse of the idea of a convention on the Lib Dems
 Dems

“This is a matter of real regret and owes in no short measure to the cack-handed way in which the Liberals leaked the correspondence as a spoiler to the Welsh Labour conference.”

Plaid Cymru health spokeswoman Elin Jones said the timing of the commission was not right given the recent political rows involving the NHS and the forthcoming elections.

"Election time is not the time to be discussing impartially the future of the NHS," she said.
"Fundamentally, it was a commission that was going to be confined by party politics rather than released from the interference of political parties."

I fully support the idea of a commission  but we are in effect facing a year long election campaign  taking in GE2015 and the 2013 Assembly Elections .

For the life of me I can;t see any Party including the LIB Dems who often appear to be Shroud Waving  to keep quiet and not come up with headline grabbing promises of more Doctors , more Nurses mixed with opposition to Hospital reorganisations.

Maybe after 2016 we may have an opportunity for  such a commission the NHS to be examined not from a oppositional politics but something that can become that will benefit the people of Wales. But for now we wil only have seen  the Welsh LibDem leader in particular  making valid points  at First Minister Question and grabbing a few headlines whilst claiming to be  taking a positive lead on a commission trying to resolve the issues.