Wednesday 27 April 2016

Stilton Power Doctors


What with being absent on the continent for most of last week, the cheese jar was left unattended. This resulted in the Stilton becoming somewhat liquid in parts, but it was heavenly and I couldn't get enough of it. You know, I'm convinced that my death certificate, when it's written, will list the cause of death as toxic shock and total organ failure from some hideous gastro-intestinal, bacteriological infection occasioned by a surfeit of over-ripe Stilton.

Scottish Power has been fined a record amount for bad service, yet we switched to them a year ago because they were the cheapest. There are only three ways a company can have the cheapest products:
  1. They're a new entrant to a market that has been dominated by monopolistic entities who have kept the price artificially high,
  2. They have developed an innovative manufacturing or product delivery process that cuts their costs, or
  3. They skimp on customer service to facilitate price cuts.
Seems the strategy in power generation is number 3. It's a good short term strategy to generate immediate revenue, but not so good for the long term and retaining customers. Once you've pissed off a customer, you'll never get him or her back.

Jeremy Hunt was going on yesterday about it not being right that the BMA can stop an election promise to have 7 day a week hospital treatment - it's undemocratoc. Funny, it's usually the government that prevents election promises being delivered - as  I believe it to be the case here. The election manifesto does not say how a 7 day a week NHS is to be implemented, all it does say is that the government will ensure adequate staffing. Now, if we currently have a 5 day NHS and they are aiming for 7 days (although it actually works 7 days currently, but not officially), logic dictates they intend either;
  1. to make doctors work longer hours at basic pay, or 
  2. they are going to recruit more doctors. 
Given the manifesto specifically stated adequate staffing, the natural conclusion one can draw is that they would recruit more staff to cover a 7 day working week, and that's what the electorate assumed. Nowhere in the manifesto does it say they will tinker with junior doctors' terms and conditions to provide 7 day service with the current staffing levels and within the current budget. Hunt is playing a dangerous game with the electorate.


Regarding all the slebs who are advising us about whether we should stay in the EU or leave; before making up my mind I want to know David Beckham's take on the situation.


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