Prime Minister Theresa May will attempt to boost her failing government with a cabinet reshuffle on 8 January. A quarter of her cabinet are expected to be moved or sacked. And there are many people up and down the country hoping that Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt is one of them.
There are 1.3 million NHS staff praying for the same result for Jeremy Hunt in the cabinet reshuffle
Please RT if you are right behind them pic.twitter.com/pEO16dKEoB
— NHS Million (@NHSMillion) January 7, 2018
A record of failure
Hunt became Health Secretary in 2012. Since then, he has repeatedly clashed with NHS staff and overseen a series of crises. At present, the NHS endures mass closures, cancelled operations and patients forced to lie on floors. The original government position was to deny this. On 4 January, Hunt finally admitted it. Anguished hospital staff have made their feelings clear.
https://twitter.com/DancingTheMind/status/949398759577972738
Wishes granted?
Indications suggest those hoping for an end to Hunt’s tenure as Health Secretary will get their wish. But in a controversial move, Prime Minister Theresa May looks set to promote him to Deputy Prime Minister, replacing Damian Green.
https://twitter.com/ToryFibs/status/949636277846110208
Reaction
Many have pointed out that rewarding a Health Secretary for bringing the NHS to its knees is a strange decision.
https://twitter.com/ShehabKhan/status/950292019896836096
https://twitter.com/ArgyleLoz/status/949800934481235970
The promotion, if it comes, appears to vindicate those who believe Tory austerity policies have been a process of ‘privatisation by the back door’.
https://twitter.com/DancingTheMind/status/950045065451319296
After all, in 2005 Hunt co-authored a book with eventual UKIP MP Douglas Carswell and others, called Direct Democracy: An Agenda for a New Model Party. This argued for privatisation of the NHS.
Jeremy Hunt, our Health Secretary, co-wrote a book calling for the privatisation of our NHS
Please RT if you think everyone should be aware#HuntMustGo pic.twitter.com/H6sOg1D8pI
— NHS Million (@NHSMillion) December 21, 2017
And now?
Those hoping for a better future for our health service look set to be disappointed. Favourite to replace Hunt is former nurse Anne Milton. While the appointment of someone with hospital experience seems sensible, some are worried about Milton’s links. Her husband, Graham Henderson, is listed as a senior executive at Richard Branson’s Virgin Care. Virgin Care has been aggressively pursuing NHS contracts in recent years.
Jeremy Hunt wrote a book about privatising the NHS
Anne Milton is married to a Director at Virgin Care
There must be a Tory SOMEWHERE that isn’t interested in private healthcare?
Oh wait… #CabinetReshuffle https://t.co/ZwNlQjUmZ5
— NHS Million (@NHSMillion) January 8, 2018
Quite simply, while the Tories cling on to power, our National Health Service remains in grave danger.
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Featured image via screengrab
