Labour created the NHS and has safeguarded its future

It's become unfashionable to celebrate political achievement, and Labour achievement even less so. And it's positively uncouth to be proud of something that this Labour government is doing. So, slam me for saying so, but I'm really proud of the NHS. Not just that it exists and, back in 1948, against the odds, a Labour government delivered on its principle of free healthcare for all. But that today we boast one of the best and the fairest healthcare services in the world. It is one of our country's greatest assets. And let's not forget that after many years of chronic underinvestment by the Tories - resulting in huge waiting lists, crumbling hospitals and overstretched and underpaid staff - serious questions were asked about the future viability of the NHS. This was the intention: to break down public belief in the very idea... [read full story]