Government scared of scrutiny

WARRINGTON North MP Helen Jones has accused the Government of being “scared of proper scrutiny” of its plans to drastically overhaul the NHS.
The Health and Social Care Bill, which seeks to enforce a top-down re-organisation of the NHS at a cost more than £2 billion, is scheduled to be recommitted so MPs can debate the Bill further.
However, the Government is planning to only refer parts of the Bill back to Parliament rather than the whole Bill.
Ms Jones (right) said: “The Government’s Health and Social Care Bill has been a complete mess from the very start. I warned the Government months ago about the dangers of not allowing proper scrutiny of the Bill before it came to the House of Commons but that fell on deaf ears. Now we’re in a situation where the Bill has had to be paused, huge changes made and now will have to come back to Parliament for MPs to debate.
“The problem is that the Government is scared of proper scrutiny so is only referring parts of the Bill back. The nature of the NHS means that any changes to its operation in one section will affect another part of the service. That’s why we need to see the whole Bill in its new form so that MPs can see the full potential impact of the Government’s plans.
“I am also concerned that the amendments the Government is making will only be published two days before going to committee. That means that outside experts and charities have very little time to consider the changes and give their advice.
“The Government needs to stop playing games with the future of the NHS and come clean with its full plans.”