Women's Views on News |
| Open letter sent to Prime Minister Posted: 11 Jan 2017 01:46 PM PST
In a letter published on 6 January 2017 the chairs of three House of Commons Select Committees have urged the Prime Minister, Theresa May, to reach a cross-party agreement on the future of health and social care funding The letter was sent by Sarah Wollaston MP, chair of the Health Committee, Meg Hillier MP, chair of the Public Accounts Committee, and Clive Betts MP, chair of the Communities and Local Government Committee. The chairs of the three committees said that a political consensus was needed to address the “pressing social care challenges facing the country” and that it must also include the NHS, and they have called on the Prime Minister to invite all the parliamentary parties to take part in an urgent review covering the health and social care systems. “In short, the problem is widely recognised,” the MPs said: “We now need political agreement so that a solution for the long term can be found.” The letter follows the Prime Minister’s appearance before the House of Commons Liaison Committee on 20 December 2016, when she answered questions on health and social care funding – from page 26 in this text. The letter reads: ‘We are writing to follow up the discussion at the Liaison Committee on 20 December. During that evidence session, as well as in the Chamber, we have each pointed to the importance of a long-term solution to funding for both health and social care. As chairs of the three select committees with the most direct interest in the future sustainability of the health and social care systems we recognise the need for a political consensus in finding answers to the pressing social care challenges facing the country, but feel that this must also include the NHS. We were encouraged by your recognition at the Liaison Committee that everyone has a part to play in finding a sustainable way of ensuring social care provision in the future. You also accepted the need for a review to find a way of funding social care sustainably for the long term. We believe that can best be achieved if there is cross-party consensus, and therefore urge you to invite all parties to become involved in a review, which should begin as soon as possible. Given the scale of rising demand, this immense challenge will face whichever Party is in government over the coming decades. Each of our committees has examined the challenges of financial sustainability from its own perspective. The Health Committee has already concluded that the system is now at breaking point, the CLG Committee will be publishing its findings shortly and PAC continues its scrutiny of financial sustainability of the NHS in a hearing next week. The Lords Committee on the Long Term Sustainability of the NHS is also conducting a full examination of the issue and is due to report in the spring. The need for an agreed approach for the future has been supported by many organisations, including the Kings Fund, the Nuffield Trust and the Local Government Association, as well as by Simon Stevens, Chief Executive of NHS England, and Stephen Dorrell, Chair of the NHS Confederation. The CLG Committee’s recent visit to Germany demonstrated how important such a cross-party consensus is to finding a lasting solution which retains public support. Successive Governments over many years have recognised the need to address this issue and have commissioned a number of reports, including Wanless and Dilnot, which have reinforced our point. In the last Parliament the Barker Commission also set out a number of options that could be included in a future settlement. We are calling for a new political consensus to take this forward. This needs to be done swiftly so that agreement can be reflected in the next spending round. We also feel that the ongoing separation of health and social care is creating difficulties for individuals and avoidable barriers and inefficiencies. Any review should cover the two systems. In short, the problem is widely recognised – we now need political agreement so that a solution for the long term can be found. For our part we shall do what we can to contribute to a consensus.’ And it closes with: ‘We look forward to hearing from you.’ There were widespread reports of chaos at hospitals in many different parts of the country over the Christmas holiday period, and dire stories of patients waiting in – and dying in – hospital corridors, and about the 4-hour waiting time, and the absence of care for those who should be leaving hospital but for whom no care would have been provided had they done so. |
| Sister marches, feminist zealots and cake Posted: 11 Jan 2017 08:36 AM PST
The Women's March on Washington on 21 January has now inspired nearly 300 other 'sister marches'. All the USA's 50 states and Puerto Rico are confirmed to have at least one grassroots-led march on that day, as well as 55 cities on six continents, from Tokyo to Sydney, Kenya to Paris to Bogotá, Vienna to Dublin, London to Belfast, Edinburgh to Shipley. In England, the Shipley Feminist Zealots march is among those planned in solidarity with the women of the USA. The Shipley Feminist Zealots is a Facebook Group of over 500 members, formed last summer after Philip Davies, a Conservative MP, said "feminist zealots really do want women to have their cake and eat it". Davies is a strong supporter of Donald Trump and has said he would “vote for him in a heartbeat”, as well as having some very odd ideas of his own about equality. To find out about – and sign – the petition calling for his resignation, click here. The Shipley Feminist Zealots’ sister march will start and finish in Shipley Market Square, with the route passing Philip Davies’ consituency office. And the Shipley Feminist Zealots will be running a cake stall and will have singers, speeches and beautiful banners. Wear the suffragette colours if you can – purple, green and white. Or if you’re feeling crafty, you can knit a pussyhat! While each person may have their own reasons for marching, the mission is to bring people together to take a stand on issues that deeply impact all of us. These marches will seek to reaffirm the core American values of freedom and democracy for all at a time when many fear that their voices will be lost, and are specifically related to women's rights, immigrant rights, worker rights, reproductive rights, LGBTQIA rights, environmental rights, rights for all races, and religious freedom. Spearheaded by first time-organisers and seasoned activists, the marches are bringing together people of all backgrounds, races, religions, gender identities, ages and abilities, as well as communities of immigrants. "This is an unprecedented, organic and viral grassroots global movement that is growing every day. More than 500,000 people have already committed to march all over the country and the world in just a matter of weeks," said Boston-based national sister march spokeswoman Yordanos Eyoel, who became a US citizen last autumn. "The aggregate turnout has the potential to exceed 1 million marchers. "What makes this movement even more special is that people who have never been politically active before are now mobilising." Although led by women, all are welcome to attend the marches. More than 300,000 people have signed up on Facebook to attend a local march, in addition to approximately 200,000 who have said they will attend the Women's March on Washington. Each march will have its own programme, from music and speeches to a rally at a suffragist's grave in upstate New York, to a verbal "human mosaic" of people in Napa Valley sharing their vision for the future. In Maui, the march will begin with a moment of silence followed by a Hawaiian blessing. In Birmingham, Alabama, marchers will gather at the 16th Baptist Church, an iconic civil rights site. "We need to stand united in the fight for justice and recognition of our shared humanity," said Little Rock, Arkansas's sister march organiser and Be the Change Alliance founder Gwendolynn Combs, who has never been politically active before now. "The Women’s March for Arkansas strives to build that momentum by uniting, educating, and empowering new activists, exposing them to new ideas, and providing direction while connecting them to advocacy organizations." The cities in the USA with the largest number of march registrants so far include Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, Portland, Boston, Denver, San Francisco, New York, Austin and Minneapolis/St. Paul. But even marches in small and non-coastal cities are gaining momentum as well, in places such as Topeka, Nashville, Des Moines, Oklahoma City, Columbus, and Phoenix. "We're excited that women across the nation and the world are organising to stand together in solidarity," Bob Bland, a co-chair of Women's March on Washington, said. "Our unity will send a strong and clear message that women and our allies will protect our rights, our health, our safety and our communities. "These sister marches show a powerful and inclusive movement, which is just as crucial as the thousands who will travel to D.C.” For a complete list of the marches, or to find the march nearest you, or to sign yours up, visit the Women’s March on Washington's sister march international directory page, or go to womensmarch.com. Share stories from the day with sister marches around the world using #WhyIMarch. To find out about knitting a pussyhat, click here. |
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