The name of the game is Barter

There’s more at stake than pride!

With the uncertainty that is UK politics currently nothing can be taken for granted! Other countries may happily live with ‘hung’ or ‘you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours’ politics for decades, but it is just not comfortable living that way in the UK. It is even less possible with the present state of affairs in British politics.

It would be wrong and misleading to say that the present Government (albeit only just the Government) are the most right wing that has ever been in power, but it is in power, with a dubious mandate. Worse still, it is in power with a dubious mandate at a time when there is an awful lot for the country to lose, and much that can – and possibly will – go wrong.

If the present Government is not the most Right Wing, then it is equally fair to say that the widely acclaimed new leader of the biggest Opposition party, is certainly the most avowedly Socialist leader of an opposition party for many years in Britain. So Socialist that even his own parliamentary party pushed for and forced a second leadership election in order to try to bring him down. He was reconfirmed, with an even bigger majority, so the ‘pink’ underbelly of the old Labour party had to lick their wounds and do one of two things: either do the honourable thing and fall on their sword, or pretend that they had only wanted to be sure, and then say “All Hail,Caesar”!

All this is happening after the closest of close general elections. An election apprently called in order to ‘get a fiirm mandate’ before entering the crucial talks with Europe which would extricate the UK from the European Economic Community for good. Not a shrewd move, and one that the Prime Minister must now have nightmares about.

The Government incumbent, because of its minute majority, is outnumbered by the Oppostion if the Opposition is supported (as is more than likely) in any vote by the other MPs representing the smaller UK political parties, This would be merely annoying to Conservative Governmentsi in the past because the gulf between the political ideologies was not so great, and the decisions to be taken were never before so important – excluding war times.

At this crucial time the Government is relying on a few Northern Irish extrlemely right wing and demanding elected members with seats in Westminster to give them a majority in any vote. It is, to say the least, deliiously precarious! The Northen Irish politicians, whilst being undoubtedly more akin with the Conservative Party than with the Socialists, would only have to abstain on any give vote and the cause would be lost. They can add any number of demands on their ;shopping list’ in order to drive a worthwhile bargain. And indeed why would they not do that? After all, they could never have known, without a crystal ball, that they would ever be in this kind of powerplay. Northern Ireland is a very small pinprick on an already pimpled hand of any Westminster based government, so to have the whip thrust beseachingly into their grasp would test the goodness of a saint – and they are certainly not saints! They are hard-nosed, clear headed, right wing politicians who have fallen out of obscurity into the limeliight.

Nobody could argue that the previous versions of a Labour Government (which was last in power from 1997 to 2010) could best be described as ‘centrist’ rather than socialist: a far cry from the declared politicsl of the new leader. A new leader, who despite the best efforts of the predominantly anti-left media during the General Election managed to come a whisker away from up-ending the status quo and scoring a direct hit.

Apart from the obvious elephant in the room – BREXIT – one of the major fields of conflict is set to be the National Health Service – the NHS. This has been a bastion of fair-minded and civilised Britain since the end of the war, when in 1945 people had seen enough of superiority versus inferiority, the sacrifice of the many in favour of the few. The NHS is enshrined in law, and enacted by Parliament, and seeks to provide a catch-all health service to all people, regardless of wealth, rank, station or privilege. The slogan quoted has two variations: some say “From Cradle to Grave”, but others say it goes much father “From Womb to Tomb”!

Insecurities abound at this time: the unpredictability of the effect on Britain’s financial future ourside Europe; the resultant affect on the cost of living index; the uncertainty of building trading partners with the rest of the world. Much of this is not entirelyl eithin the powers of Britain itself to decide. Much depends on whether or not European negotiators take a hard-nosed stance in exit talks or not..

One of the biggest fears in the UK generally is that a prime target for ‘good housekeeping’ is the NHS. Those with money, probably do not need it to any great extent – or it would not be disastrous if they had to pay for private health insurance. Many of those that voted for BREXIT were already of the view that it was flawed – ‘abused by outsiders and liberty takers’. The NHS has always been used as a ping-pong ball in political argument.

It could already be in trouble, post BREXIT. Many of the staff propping up the service are themselves from abroad and may well go home. Views can get polarised: One view is that the NHS is the ‘gem’ in the nation’s crown and worth every penny, since it also proves that the nation is humane, magnanimous and fair. Alternatively, though it is certainly an asset, it is nonetheless one ready for plucking – ready for asset stripping – and should be taken to whichever pawnbroker offers the most money! We are in times of financial stringency and sacrifices have to be made. It is time to sell the family silver and eat with plastic cutlery. There are vultures circling, even as I write, waiting the NHS’a death and it’s bones to be ready for picking. Money-rich moguls with an eye to a good deal are just waiting for the nod to ‘do the country a favour’ by riding to the rescue’ and ‘saving’ the NHS – at a price, and certainly not without making a bob or two themselves, surely!