Month: August 2014

Alternative Providers of Medical Services (APMS) contracts To be Offered Exclusively to Private Healthcare Providers

All new GP, Alternative Providers of Medical Services (APMS) contracts To be offered exclusively to Private Healthcare providers

NHS Contract Terminology

1. Personal Medical Services contracts (PMS)
Contracts are agreed between NHS England and GP practices, together with funding arrangements. In England, approximately 40 per cent of GP practices are on PMS contracts.

2. General Medical Services (GMS)
practice-based contract rewards practices for essential services, as well as additional services that practices can choose to offer.

3. Alternative Providers of Medical Services (APMS)
Under APMS, PCTs are able to contract for primary medical services with commercial providers, voluntary sector providers, mutual sector providers, social enterprises, public service bodies, GMS and PMS practices (through a separate APMS contract) and NHS Trusts and NHS Foundation Trusts.

Contracting Policy

Exclusive All new GP contracts will be opened up to bids from the private sector by NHS England in a move that GP leaders have warn marks the ‘death-knell’ of traditional life-long general practice. As a tide of practices face closure, because of competition law they will replaced with time-limited, (usually 5 year) APMS contracts instead. The move has taken GP leaders by surprise, with the GPC seeking urgent legal advice about the move. Some have warned it will lead to the privatisation of the NHS with surgeries replaced with ‘short-term, profit making ventures’.

http://www.nhsemployers.org/your-workforce/primary-care-contacts/general-medical-services
http://www.nhshistory.net/personal_medical_services.htm

Click to access apms-standard-contract-june14.pdf

http://alternativeprimarycare.wordpress.com/2009/07/15/alternative-providers-of-medical-services-apms/
http://www.pulsetoday.co.uk/home/stop-practice-closures/revealed-all-new-gp-contracts-will-be-thrown-open-to-private-providers/20007596.article
http://www.computerworlduk.com/news/public-sector/3502156/nhs-england-plans-fines-for-gps-not-using-new-e-referral-system/

The foregoing changes are now well under way in England. High street pharmacies will be increasingly offering a range of services previously the remit of GP’s. Computerised private patient records will be made available to contractors. GP service provision will be dismantled over a period of 5-10 years in favour of large Private Healthcare providers. The Scottish government recently restated that healthcare provision in Scotland will not be subject to such abuse, which favours profiteering by large private healthcare contractors. But in the event of a, “No” vote the English NHS model in all respects will be imposed, (by stealth) on Scotland. Scot’s who wish to retain the existing Scottish NHS should vote, “Yes” in the referendum.

A few views from senior NHS medical staff

An NHS England spokesperson said: ‘Under the GMS regulations there is scope to enter into a temporary contract but this is AT CLEAR ODDS WITH PROCUREMENT LAW and the 2013 regulations so best practice would dictate that this should not be used when APMS effectively does the same job and does not come with the same risks attached. “GMS can still be entered into upon reversion from PMS and the new form of PMS contract may be entered into by way of renegotiation (ie variation) but in respect of procurements, yes they should all be on APMS.”

GP leaders are warning that, with practices under increasing workload and financial pressure, strict tender requirements could exclude smaller practices from primary care and drive the invasion of private providers and they are advising practices to seek alternatives to contract termination, for example by merging, when partners reach retirement in order to avoid losing, “invaluable” GMS and PMS contracts.

GPC chair Dr Chaand Nagpaul said he was surprised to hear about the national policy that would, “spell the death knell of the whole ethos of long-term, continuity of care in the way general practice operates”. He said the GPC was seeking urgent legal advice on whether NHS England was correct in asserting that APMS contracts were the only way to satisfy international procurement law. He added: “It’s extremely unfortunate, and highly ill-advised that area teams should be undermining secure, long-term sustained provision of general practice through APMS contracts. There is nothing to stop an area team choosing to use a PMS or GMS as a contract, on the grounds that it offers a local population the best mechanism for the provision of general practice services.”

Dr Tony Grewal, Medical Director at Londonwide LMCs said they were worried about the moves in the capital that would replace family doctors with, “short-term, profit making ventures that went against the ethos of primary care”. He added: “APMS is only for five years, potentially renewable, which means that you cannot invest time, you can’t invest in the long term. It’s designed for people to go in, to make a profit, and to go out again. Which is not, in my opinion, what general practice is about.” “What it means is, over a reasonably short period of time, given the rate at which practices are closing at the moment, you are going to have significant proportions of general practice services in London, being run by the commercials or big conglomerates.”

Dr David Jenner, GP contract lead at the NHS Alliance and a GP in Cullompton, Devon, warned that the move would mean that independent GPs would struggle to compete with larger healthcare corporations. He said, “Often minimum requirements of IT, quality, financial backing, in practice can make it difficult for small providers to effectively compete”. “It can be a very inefficient way of procuring a service of limited value. There is also the danger of providers bidding low to win the contract and then being unable to meet the terms of it.”

BMA Council member and Lewisham GP Dr Louise Irvine said, “I’m worried about that becoming the new model of care, we’ve already seen new models of private companies bidding for these APMS contracts, some of them have been successful and it’s hard for ordinary practices to bid against them.” She added, “It’s very much part of a trend, it’s part of this big push to privatise, to commercialise and bring in private, for profit companies to run more and more, not just primary care, but community and secondary hospital care.”

Wind Energy Smashes UK Electricity Share Record

Wind Energy Smashes UK Electricity Share Record

Wind turbines met 22 per cent of power demand on Sunday 17 Aug 2014, while coal contributed just 13 per cent. Yesterday’s high winds may have been frustrating for anyone out and about, but they also helped set a new record for wind power on the grid.

According to RenewableUK, Britain’s fleet of onshore and offshore wind turbines met 22 per cent of electricity demand during Sunday 17 Aug 2014, setting a new record, comfortably outperforming coal, which met just 13 per cent of demand.

Nearly 5.8MW of wind power was generated, which is equal to the power demand of 15 million homes, the trade association said.

August 2014 already looks set to be a particularly strong month for the UK wind energy industry, with reports confirming wind turbines also met 21 per cent of demand last week as the UK felt the tail end of Hurricane Bertha.

“We’re seeing very high levels of generation from wind throughout August 2014 so far, proving yet again that onshore and offshore wind has become an absolutely fundamental component in this country’s energy mix,” said RenewableUK’s director of external affairs, Jennifer Webber. “It also shows that wind is a dependable and reliable source of power in every month of year – including high summer.”

The latest figures also confirmed that solar power provided three per cent of power on the grid yesterday, while hydroelectric plants produced one per cent.

Constraint Payments – (A Temporary Measure)

Critics pointed out that the National Grid is forced to pay wind turbines millions of pounds to switch off on windy days in order to balance out demand. Last week, it paid wind developers £2.8m and £1.1m to other generators in balancing payments at the time high winds coincided with a period of low demand.

Constraint payments are necessary but will be much reduced following upgrades to the national electricity network, such as the Western Link – a £1bn subsea cable that will bring renewable energy from SCOTLAND to the rest of the UK

Yesterday’s record is the latest in a string of strong performances across Europe for the renewables industry over the past 12 months. Recent data has suggested that Germany and Spain have also delivered record levels of clean energy output in the past six to 12 months, as surveys across Europe have also demonstrated high levels of public support for renewable energy.

Afternote

Never mind oil, Scotland is the leading renewable clean energy producer in Europe. The UK electricity grid is dependent upon Scotland’s clean electricity and this dependency is expected to increase to around 50% by the year 2020.

A, “Yes” vote in the referendum will ensure Scotland benefits directly from the income generated by electricity production. A, “No” vote will result in the UK National Grid claiming production as a national asset, (to be controlled by Westminster). A yes vote is the only sensible way forward.

http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2360817/wind-energy-smashes-uk-energy-share-record

The Inefficient UK National (Electricity Supply) Grid

The electrical grid is viewed by the public as a natural and strategic asset. As such it is, in the view of many, totally unsuited to the pressures of market forces. But if a market is to operate then application of variable transmission costs make sense.

Electricity transmission loss in transfer forms a small part of overall electricity loss. The real problem with the grid is capacity crunch. The lack of a transmission cable from the islands to the Scottish mainland brings with it reduced amounts of electricity transfer from the North of Scotland. Supply of electricity to the grid is therefore rationed and this brings with it increased transmission costs. In England there is a lot of demand, but not much generation. The installation of an electrical supply cable link from the islands to the Scottish mainland, (regardless of the outcome of the referendum) is crucial to the future of the National Grid.

The option of expanding Coal, Gas and Nuclear power stations, (using lease lend contracting) funded, designed, built and operated, using foreign finance and workforces may appear to be attractive and cost effective over electricity but fossil-fuels and nuclear have been indulged for far too long on cleaning up their long-term residual mess and when the cost of this is factored in renewable energy is by far the more cost effective.

A recently published, (heavily biased) OFGEM report is very positive about the use of renewable energy, but not at this time. Entirely due to a lack of forward planning by Westminster governments, short term measures are considered necessary, in England. The Con/Dem government is determined to expand nuclear production, (although the preferred options would breech EU financial rules). The Department of Energy and Climate Change, (DECC) is undecided and a government funded and staffed, (blinker wearing) policy think tank strongly believes in market forces, but only so far as nuclear is good and renewables are bad. So the future of UK renewable energy looks bleak.

Scotland is rich in renewable energy production and does not need to commit to the Westminster governments dogma. But a, “No” vote will bring with it the introduction in the next parliament of a, “National UK Energy Production Policy Unit” which will direct the development of ALL energy production within the UK, (including Scotland). All that has been achieved in Scotland will be set aside in favour of the pursuit of nuclear power expansion. But there is remedy available, vote, “Yes” in the referendum so that Scotland will be able to continue the good works in place and planned. We do not need to follow a lead to destruction.

The Basket-case Economy- The UK or Panama?? Darling hopelessly wrong again

The Basket-case Economy- The UK or Panama?? Darling hopelessly wrong again

Panama announces major oilfield discovery in Darien. I seem to remember a number of the Darien shares were lodged, (for safekeeping) with the, Bank of Scotland. Might be Scotland retains some control of the area formally settled and claimed for Scotland all those year’s ago. Darling keen to put Panama down as a basket-case economy

But the truth is that it is the UK that is operating a basket-case economy and in the event of a, “no” vote Westminster will, (soon after) set about reducing the UK deficit, which is now larger than the total world deficit that brought the World to it’s knee’s in the 1930’s. Austerity measures. “You ain’t seen nuthin’ yet”.

The UK population is currently, severely burdened down with debt, (encouraged by the excesses of successive governments). It is calculated that the debt, ( spread evenly across every household) equates to about 50% of the total weekly cash available to them.

The Governor of the Bank of England has given formal notice to the Con/Dem government that inflation, now rife in the economy will need to be reduced significantly or the UK will be in, “deep S***t.

The problem for the UK population is the only feasible fiscal correcting measure is a sharp rise in interest rates. A rise which will result in widespread bankruptcy, loss of jobs, homes and other moveable / transferable assets for many millions of UK citizens.

These measures will be kept well hidden until the, “Chancellors Autumn Statement” (well after the referendum) so as not to influence the Scottish vote in favour of independence. Scot’s need to be aware of the foregoing so that they will be able to vote, “Yes” in the referendum. “Beware of locusts bearing gifts” since there is very often a, “sting in the tail”.

Romeo Oilfield Discovery

Trapoil and the Romeo Oilfield discovery

Trapoil has entered into an agreement with Prostar Capital Limited, a global private equity firm, which will enable Trapoil to participate in the consolidation of the Romeo discovery, a high value asset within the North Sea. Prostar’s management believes that there is considerable value in the North Sea, and has established a substantial fund targeted at acquiring undervalued assets and companies in the region.

The Romeo discovery (drilled in 2012) in which Trapoil now holds a controlling position, has SIGNIFICANT POTENTIAL in the event a further planned high impact well is drilled. TOTAL OIL controls, with 100% equity, the adjacent block to the west that contains approximately 20 per cent. of Romeo and has a lookalike structure named Alfa (or Scarinish). In Q4 2013, Trapoil farmed out its Valleys asset, located near the Forties field, to TOTAL OIL and in return negotiated, inter alia, an option to acquire up to a 35 per cent. equity interest in Alfa. This option has now been extended through to late July 2014. The Company believes this option to be important as drilling information from the Alfa prospect will be key to unlocking the potential in the Romeo discovery. Alfa is expected to be drilled in 2015 and is a commitment to DECC.

JK Rowling Moans About, “Yes” Campaigners

JK Rowling Moans About, “Yes” Campaigners

In her explanatory letter to the Public Rowling predicted that some pro-independence campaigners would discount her views because she was born and raised in England. She likened that stance to the obsession with pure wizard blood of the villainous characters in her magical saga. “When people try to make this debate about the purity of your lineage, things start getting a little Death Eaterish for my taste,” “you need to know that there is going to be a referendum on 18th September on whether or not Scotland should leave the United Kingdom. If you’re only vaguely interested, or pressed for time, there’s further mention of Death Eaters later in my letter”

It must be argued, with good reason, that Rowling invited attacks on herself, since it was she who first gave mention to “Death Eaters”. Indeed she made great effort. She wrote; “when people try to make this debate about the purity of your lineage, things start getting a little Death Eaterish for my taste.” I wonder what moved her to invite negative comment about her lineage, since it was a subject given no coverage in the debate. Indeed a multitude of expats, from many countries living in Scotland, have expressed strong opinion supporting views totally contrary to those of JK Rowling. http://www.jkrowling.com/en_GB/news-events

Miliband & the Foreigners

Ed Miliband recently badgered shoppers in Edinburgh pleading with them to vote, “No” in the referendum since he did not wish to see his sons grow up believing they would be classified as foreigners if they visited an independent Scotland.

Pure tripe of course but all part of the spread of disinformation the, “no” campaigners are committed to. How sad they are. Many of Ed’s family reside in Israel and I conjecture, his boy’s if asked, would not view their close relatives in Israel as foreigners. In any event the legal status of the citizens of a new rUK & Scotland would remain unaltered. Under the terms of a, “Personal Union” all subjects of the Monarch are considered equal and not alien to one another. See the attached;

A Personal Union

A, “Personal Union” was established in 1714 at the time George Louis, (King of Hanover) acceded to the throne of Great Britain, (as George 1). The, “Union” remained in place until 1837 when Victoria was appointed Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, at which time the, (Union) was terminated since, “Rights of Succession” did not extend to, the House of Hanover which insisted on male succession.

Definition;

A personal union is the combination of two or more different states who have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. An independent Scotland with the existing monarch as it’s head of state would establish rUK and Scotland as a, “Personal Union”.

The, “Standard” of the, “Personal Union”;

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Hanover#mediaviewer/File:Royal_Standard_of_the_United_Kingdom_%281816%E2%80%931837%29.svg

Why All The Wars?

Why All The Wars?

“The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in times of great moral crisis, maintain their neutrality.”

It is sometimes frightening to read posts about the horrors of war. And there never seems to be any realistic alternative put forward. But an alternative to war was established in 1945 and agreed to by all nations – The United Nations and a charter spelled out the fundamental aims of the body. It states;

“We the peoples of the United Nations determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, and to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, and to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained, and to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom, and for these ends to practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbours, and to unite our strength to maintain international peace and security, and to ensure, by the acceptance of principles and the institution of methods, that armed force shall not be used, save in the common interest, and to employ international machinery for the promotion of the economic and social advancement of all peoples, have resolved to combine our efforts to accomplish these aims.”

Westminster would not be denied

War, is a much valued tool, through which politicians impose their will upon nations, other than their own, and they were determined not be denied their conflicts. War has been erased from political and military vocabulary to be replaced with, “humanitarian action” providing a mechanism allowing the USA, assisted by the UK too, (in support of the special relationship) commit our armed forces to the provision of charitable and extraordinarily expensive assistance, easing the burden of oppression wherever in the world it might surface.

Media outlets are now an extension of the state, (witness BBC Scotland’s biased coverage of the referendum campaign.) There are no, “War Correspondents” only, “embedded journalists” who produce heavily censored and sanitized reports. Where targets used to be, “bombed into submission” they are now subject to, “surgical strikes” creating a false premise that such actions are, “healing” by their nature. Death of civilians and massive destruction of dwellings reported often as, “collateral damage”.

What a confusion, “War is Peace and Peace is War” George Orwell

Trading Penalties

Alistair (Flipper) Darling issues, (from his cave) another tome of gloom & doom twaddle, Said;

” Businesses in Scotland could suffer if they are cut off from the UK’s single market by a, “Yes vote”. But the rules of the EEC market are explicit; Countries, members of the European Economic Community operate with no imposition of duties on trade with one another. We would be wise to ignore anything emanating from the, “Bitter Campaign” lot. They have clearly lost the plot and I expect the referendum also.

Friends of Israel in Westminster

The Labour Party and the rise and rise of the Jewish lobby in Westminster.

The labour party is ruled by the Jewish lobby.

Westminster Rules – The Committee on Standards in Public Life:
“Holders of public office should not place themselves under any financial or other obligation to outside individuals or organisations that might seek to influence them in the performance of their official duties.”

Quotes

I had a very clear view about the history of Israel, about the trials and tribulations of the Jewish people, about the enormous suffering and loss during the Holocaust, as well as the extraordinary struggle that my father described to me of people to create this magnificent homeland.”- Gordon Brown in a speech given to the Labour Friends of Israel in April 2007, as quoted in the Israeli paper The Jerusalem Post, “New British PM will likely be friend to Israel”, June 27, 2007.

The Labour for Israel group, (LFI) was founded in 1957. It is; “A Westminster based lobby group working within the British Labour Party to promote the State of Israel”. The group is well connected within the party, and has regular meetings with ministers. Ambitious MPs see a role at LFI as a good way to get ahead. Chairs of the LFI very often go on to become UK government ministers. James Purnell, (head of Communications at the BBC) and Jim Murphy, (Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland), are two recent chairmen.

One of Tony Blair’s first acts on becoming an MP in 1983 was to join Labour Friends of Israel. He retained close links to the group throughout his career.
Blair succeeded in making the Labour party more attractive to donors connected with the Labour Friends of Israel. The key figure in building these relationships was, of course, Michael Levy. Blair met Levy in 1994 at a dinner party thrown by Gideon Meir, number two at the Israeli Embassy. Blair was just back from a trip to Israel with the LFI.

The two men quickly recognised the mutual benefits offered by the relationship. By early 1995, Blair was leader of the opposition and he dropped in on his new friend for a swim and a game of tennis almost every weekend. Levy had been collecting donations to a blind trust, known as the Labour Leader’s Office Fund, raising nearly two million pounds, a sum “previously unimaginable for a Labour leader”. Blair maintained that he was unaware of the sources of these donations despite being in almost constant contact with Levy and even meeting some of the donors. Jon Mendelsohn, a former chairman of the LFI, Gordon Brown’s chief election fundraiser, speaking in 2007, described Tony Blair’s achievement in transforming the Labour Party’s position on Israel. “Blair attacked the anti-Israelism that had existed in the Labour Party.

Blair told Levy, “I am absolutely determined that we must not go into the next election financially dependent on the trade unions.” Instead, Zionism became pervasive in New Labour. Blair had become financially dependent on large donors, some of whom had very strong views on Israel. Lord Levy is estimated to have raised over fifteen million pounds for Blair before the “cash for peerages” affair brought Levy’s fundraising to an end in the summer of 2006.

If you are unhappy with the foregoing vote, “Yes” in the September referendum so that Scotland can be freed from the control of such a powerful lobby.

“In our country the lie has become not just a moral category, but a pillar of the state.”—Alexander Solzhenitsyn

The Conservative Party and the rise and rise of the Jewish lobby in Westminster.

Westminster Rules – The Committee on Standards in Public Life:
“Holders of public office should not place themselves under any financial or other obligation to outside individuals or organisations that might seek to influence them in the performance of their official duties.”

Quotes
“I am proud not just to be a Conservative, but a Conservative friend of Israel; and I am proud of the key role CFI plays within our Party. Israel is a democracy, a strong and proud democracy, in a region that is, we hope, making its first steps in that direction.” David Cameron.

The Conservative Friends of Israel, described by Conservative Party politician and historian Robert Rhodes James as “the largest organization in Western Europe dedicated to the cause of the people of Israel.” is beyond doubt the best connected, and probably the best funded, of all Westminster lobbying groups. Eighty percent of Conservative MPs are members. The Foreign Secretary and his team are subjected to persistent pressure by the CFI. It was only senior MPs whose careers are winding down that felt able to voice what many MPs told us in private.

1. Michael Mates, Former member of the Paliamentary Intelligence and Security Committee said, “the pro-Israel lobby in our body politic is the most powerful political lobby. There’s nothing to touch them.” He added, “I think their lobbying is done very discreetly, in very high places, which may be why it is so effective.”

The Laudable aims of the Conservative and Labour Parties and Friends of Israel

1. “Friends of Israel”, seeks to promote a strong bilateral relationship between Britain and Israel educating members of both movements on the policy successes and challenges within Israeli society”.

2. “Friends of Israel”, supports the government of Israel in its efforts to continue to seek the realisation of a two state solution, with Palestine, recognised and safe within its borders, living peacefully alongside a democratic and viable Palestinian state.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/9740044/The-cowardice-at-the-heart-of-our-relationship-with-Israel.html
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2009/nov/16/pro-israel-lobby-conservatives-channel4-dispatches
If you are unhappy with the foregoing vote, “Yes” in the September referendum so that Scotland can be freed from the control of such a powerful lobby.