Thursday 13 February 2020

"Welsh" Labour can not act as their own opposition on Hospital Closures.

It is difficult for me to look at "Welsh" Labour  politicians "Leading" protests against hospital closures without calling out their  hypocrisy.

Labour figures then accuse Plaid Cymru of Political Opportunism in holding meetings highlighting the NHS in Wales is devolved and any threat of hospital lies with the Welsh" Labour Government.

They are of course right , but Plaid are the opposition Party and it is part of thier duty as such to take the government to task.

The point is Labour can not act as their own opposition , and they can't claim to lead campaigns against their own government and expect other parties to meekly fall in line behind them.

Even at a risk of dividing the campaign the sight of MPs Chris Bryant  (Rhondda and Pontyprdd Alexandra Davies-Jones (MP) and Mick Antoniw not taking some responsibility on behalf of their party is disappointing to say the least.


Two reports from BBC Cymru

The first minister has said he will not sack his chief whip over her opposition to a hospital ward closure in her constituency.
Vale of Glamorgan assembly member Jane Hutt protested against the proposed closure of a ward at Barry Hospital.
Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price said Ms Hutt had been campaigning against her own Labour government's policy.
First Minister Drakeford accused Mr Price of not understanding the ministerial code.
The code sets out rules government ministers must follow.
In September, Cardiff and Vale health board said it was considering closing the Sam Davies Ward at Barry Hospital - which has 23 beds and is mainly for elderly patients.
Under the plan, they would have instead received care at Llandough Hospital or "closer to home".
Delivering more care away from hospitals is a longstanding aim of the Welsh Government.
Ms Hutt wrote on her website last summer that she was "very concerned" about proposals to close the ward and would "continue to make the case" for retaining it.
A petition against the plan was organised by Unison and Ms Hutt appeared with campaigners outside the Senedd in October.
The health board put the planned closure on hold before Christmas after a public consultation.
 In a heated exchange on the matter at First Minister's Questions on Tuesday, Mr Price said "accountability" for the NHS must lie with ministers "collectively in the Welsh Government"."Giving carte blanche to ministers when it is politically convenient to intervene in relation to constituency matters, you're eroding trust in politics and in this institution," he said.
Mr Drakeford said he had "seldom heard more nonsense spoken in this assembly" and said Mr Price was "not a man for detail."
"What the member for the Vale of Glamorgan did is entirely consistent with the ministerial code," he said.
"I know because I took the trouble to check it before this afternoon.
"And let me tell you this: you aren't a government minister for 20 years in devolution without understanding what you can and cannot do in your constituency and ministerial capacities, and the member for the Vale of Glamorgan has a better understanding in her little finger of the probity and decency required of ministers than his question this afternoon demonstrates for a moment."
Mr Price responded by saying the code was "quite clear" that ministers "cannot campaign against government policy."
"This ward closure was a direct result of your own government policy. That's the point. You're in danger, on the NHS, of turning double standards into an art form.
"In other parliaments, in other contexts, as chief whip, she'd have to have a stern word with herself, maybe remove the whip from herself.
"You couldn't make it up, first Minister, except you do time after time when it's politically expedient to do so."
A visibly angered Mr Drakeford, holding up a copy of the ministerial code, replied: "I'm not making it up, but he certainly is. There is no conflict at all."

and yesterday 


number of politicians opposed to the plans addressed the crowds earlier, who held a protest ahead of an assembly debate over the future of the services.Labour MP for Rhondda, Chris Bryant, said people "will die" if the department is closed.He said: "We all know the only way to keep everyone across the whole patch safe is to have a full A&E at all three hospitals."He accused the hospital of not recruiting properly, adding: "We in the Rhondda will never give up… we will fight and fight and fight for the service we know will save lives."Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price told the crowd people were "dying unnecessarily because of the idiocy of the proposal"."A people united will never be defeated, there is no power in this building or in the health board that will defeat us," he said.The situation at the Royal Glamorgan worsened recently with the resignation of its only full-time A&E consultant, meaning plans to downgrade were speeded up.The health board said this "expected retirement", along with a shortage of middle-grade doctors, meant three A&E services could not be "sustained beyond the immediate short-term".It might seem odd to have Labour politicians joining in with the criticism of the decision to downgrade A&E at the Royal Glamorgan Hospital"Doesn't Labour run the Welsh NHS after all?" their opponents say.They know few things are more important to their constituents than protecting the services they have grown up with.But it does not change the bigger picture. If you do not have enough doctors to run a safe service and cannot recruit them - what do you do?Politicians across the board will privately tell you the NHS can't stand still and things have to change.They would much prefer the most controversial changes happen somewhere else and not in their patch.But trying to avoid the consequences of unpopular decisions risks a situation where nothing changes at all.Image captionStaffing levels at all Cwm Taf's A&E units are well below UK-wide standardsThe nearest A&E to Llantrisant in the health board area is 14 miles (23km) away in Bridgend - a drive of almost 30 minutes.The other in Merthyr Tydfil is 21 miles (34km) away - a drive of almost 40 minutes.The health board has agreed to "leave no stone unturned" in seeing if anything could be done to keep the current A&E set-up as it is.Labour AM for Pontypridd Mick Antoniw said there was no merit to the proposals and that closing the department was "not viable".Plaid AM for Rhondda Leanne Wood attacked the Welsh Government for its record on health in Wales, adding the "strategic decisions" made in Cardiff Bay had led to the proposals to close the unit.

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