Lords and MPs quotes on Health and Social Care bill

The Health and Social Care bill has opened up the NHS to further privatisation, with threats from free market campaign groups with links to government wanting its total abolition.

As the bill was being debated and voted on in the House of Lords and Commons, MPs and Lords who had financial interest in companies involved in private healthcare companies, were able to vote on the bill.

This flaw has allowed the corporate takeover of our parliamentary system, and the passing of a bill that will hand over public resources into the hands of private companies our so-called public servants have vested interests in.

This page is a quote page of some of those 141 Lords and multiple MPs who have links to private healthcare. There will be more added and please use this resource, now and come election time.

Want a quote added? Send Lord/MP, interest and link to quote to: andrewfiskar@gmail.com

Lords

Who? Lord bell

Healthcare involvement? Chairman of Chime Communications Group, who have multiple companies involved in private healthcare, including Bell Pottinger, Open Health, Open LEC, Open Minds, Open Plan, Reynolds MacKenzie, VCCP Health.

Quote: "My message to the Labour Government is: stop accusing the Conservatives of wanting to privatise the NHS--we do not" - House of Lords debate on the NHS Feb 2000

Who? Lord Blackwell

Healthcare Involvement? Chairman of Interserve, consultancy to NHS and private healthcare firms. Involved in PFI hospitals.

Quote? We are now 10 years further on from that and it is important that the changes are not lost in the voices that will always oppose changes that are necessary to reform the way that the NHS works. I hope that, while listening to those voices, the Minister can assure us that these essential reforms will be carried through and that the period of uncertainty for the NHS will not be any longer than it needs to be before we can get to the kind of reformed NHS that we all want to see.

Who? Baroness Bottomley

Healthcare involvement? Director of BUPA

Quote: 'I give this Bill an unequivocal and extraordinarily warm welcome.'  

'It is romantic poppycock to think that the Secretary of State should be personally involved ...'

Who? Baroness Cumberlege

Healthcare involvement? Runs political network company Cumberlege Connections, Chair of Associate Parliamentary Health Group, Patron of 2020health, former director of Huntsworth plc.

Quote: 'I applaud the flexibility of the Bill.'

Who? Baroness Eccles

Healthcare involvement? Shares in GlaxoSmithKline

Quote: 'My Lords, I am delighted to support this bill.' 'I hope that this bill will initiate a sea change in the way that we approach the nation's health...'

Who? Lord Hamilton of Epsom

Healthcare involvement? Directorship in management consultancy MSB Ltd, who have NHS, Bupa, Nuffield Health and Care UK listed as their clients.

Quote: 'My Lords, surely one of the problems of the National Health Service is the wall of money that was thrown at a totally unreformed NHS by the last Government? Do we not need management consultants now to show us the way forward on the savings that need to be wrung out of the NHS so that it can survive into the future?' Hansard source (Citation: HL Deb, 13 February 2012, c556)

Who? Lord Naseby

Healthcare involvement? Was until October 2011 Chairman of and a share-holder in Invesco Perpetual Recovery Trust. Trust voluntarily wound down on October 27th 2011 - One fifth of their investments were in pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.

Quote: I want to make it clear that I support the Bill. More importantly, I support the need for the Bill.'  

'Finally, competition is good for any industry...Competition gives people pride and responsibility.'

Who? Baroness Noakes

Healthcare involvement? Shares in BT Group (communications), which is one of the largest suppliers of communications to the NHS. Shares in Astrazeneca, Vodaphone Group plc (contracts and suppliers to NHS), and GlaxoSmithKline.

Quotes: ‘I hope that other noble Lords will not encourage the Government to keep any limits which constrain the NHS from maximising its assets for the purposes of the NHS.'

Who? Lord Tugendhat

Healthcare involvement? Shares in Metlife, which is America's largest life insurance company also operates in the UK.

Quotes: ’The Government's mistake was to introduce a Bill that sought to impose a massive programme of management and structural change on top of an ambitious cost-cutting programme.’

Who? Lord Darzi

Healthcare Involvement? Former surgeon drafted into government as a health minister by Gordon Brown when he was PM. Now an adviser to medical technology firm GE Healthcare.

Quote: ’…he would find it 'difficult at this stage' to vote for blocking the Bill...'I am speaking as a surgeon, not a politician.'

MPs

Who? Andrew Lansley - Health Secretary

Healthcare Involvement? John Nash, the chairman of Care UK, gave £21,000 to fund Andrew Lansley’s personal office in November 2009. In 2008 Andrew Lansley received a donation from Julian Schild used to support his office in his capacity as Shadow secretary for health. Julian Schild’s family made £184million in 2006 by selling hospital bed-makers Huntleigh Technology.

Quote: "The NHS is not for sale, there will be no privatisation." When confronted at a protest Feb 2012

Who? Andrew Bridgen - MP for North-West Leicestershire
Healthcare involvement? Non-Executive chairman of fresh vegetable distributor company AB produce company which is listed as an NHS supplier.
Quote:

--> '...if we fail to go through with these reforms, we are caving into the Stalinist protectionist elements that have been allowed to stifle innovation and competition in our Healthcare system.'

Who? Nick De Bois MP for Enfield North

Healthcare involvement?

is the majority shareholder in Rapier Design Group, an events management company heavily involved with the private medical and pharmaceutical industries, and whose clients include leading names such as AstraZeneca. The company was established by the Tory MP in 1998. Last year it had a turnover of £13m. Last April, Rapier Design purchased Hampton Medical Conferences to “strengthen the company’s position in the medical sector”. It is involved in running conferences and other events for private-sector clients, and for NHS hospitals. 

Quote: ‘To meet the challenge we needed to introduce decentralization and competition, the two catalysts for efficiency. In both of these areas, the legislation is necessary, even in its compromised form.’

And:

‘I keep saying ‘we’, but I’m not really part of the industry anymore, but I still feel it.’ - when speaking at a conference hosted by Healthcare Communications Association.

Who? Margot James - MP for Stourbridge

Healthcare involvement? Co-founded public relations company, Shire Health Group. The company was sold to business partner Ogilvy & Mather for £4 million in 2004, with the Conservative MP Margot James appointed Head of European Healthcare for marketing parent WPP Group. She stood down from WPP in 2008. WPP are a marketing giant with a massive list of healthcare clients.

Quote: 'GPs, nurses and patients need now to combine forces and ensure that the resistance to change they will encounter does not limit the improvements in care that are made possible by the Bill.'

Who? Richard Ottaway - MP for Croydon South

Healthcare involvement? 9-11 July 2007, visit to the USA to attend seminars and meetings with elected US officials and policy forums. His return flight and accommodation were financed by Atlantic Bridge and registered 4 years late on 20th October 2011. His reasoning for the late registration: “I have no idea why this was not done in 2007 after the visit.' 'It very much falls into the ‘cock up’ category of human error.' 'It was a low key, short visit 4 years ago when I was an opposition backbencher. Meetings were held with members of the Republican Administration and some policy forums. I have very little precise recall of the visit.' Atlantic Bridge is a former charity founded by Liam Fox, who made a speech to Atlantic Bridge in 2003 asked: “How Much Health Care Can We Afford?” Members of the Galen Institute, a thinktank which promotes “freemarket ideas in health”, attended its conferences while the failed bank Lehman Brothers, sponsored at least one event, as did the powerful neocon thinktank the Heritage Foundation. (Guardian).

Quote: ‘I would like to be very clear: the Government will never privatise the NHS.’

And

‘The changes we want to see are simple ones…where the NHS is left free from political interference.’

Who? Priti Patel - MP for Witham

Healthcare Investment? Director of public affairs for Weber Shandwick, who have multiple healthcare clients.

Quote: ’Just as history shows that Nye Bevan introduced the legislation to establish the NHS, it will show that this Secretary of State, through the Bill, has saved it for the patients who rely on it.’

Who? Chris Skidmore - MP for Kingswood

Healthcare involvement? family also owns a company called Skidmore Medical http://www.skidmoremedical.com/, which appears to be solely selling a physiologic Vascular testing equipment. The company made a donation to him of £7,500 in June 2010.

Quote: For me I feel the bill is a very positive thing.’ "One of the best bits about the Bill for me was the element of Any Qualified Provider"