Milburn attacks NHS 'car crash'

16 June 2011 Last updated at 12:43 GMT Alan Milburn said the coalition's agenda was now "more protectionist" than Labour's The coalition's amended plans for the NHS in England are the "biggest car crash" in the service's history, an-ex Labour health secretary has said.

Alan Milburn told the Daily Telegraph the changes were being driven by "short-term politics" and would leave the NHS more financially stretched.

He also warned Labour against opposing "progressive reform" of the NHS.

But the man who headed a review of the government's NHS shake-up said Mr Milburn was wrong.

An independent panel of experts, the NHS Future Forum, recommended a series of changes, including more controls on competition and a slower pace of change, following criticism of the government's original plans from Lib Dem MPs and unions.

'Less reformist'

Mr Milburn, who as health secretary under Tony Blair came into conflict with then Chancellor Gordon Brown over greater financial freedom for hospitals, criticised David Cameron and Nick Clegg for their handling of the process.

Continue reading the main story Iain Watson Political correspondent, BBC News

An attack of this nature might be expected from a former Labour minister, but Alan Milburn has credentials as a reformer himself.

As health secretary a decade ago, he increased competition within the NHS. More recently, the coalition government appointed him to review their progress on improving social mobility.

So when he sticks the knife into David Cameron by saying he has set back radical, market-based reform of the NHS for a generation, he intends to wound.

Government sources say Alan Milburn himself failed to deliver sufficient reform and that many professional bodies support the coalition's evolutionary approach to changing the NHS.

"Many in both camps inside the coalition consider the U-turn a triumph," he said. "But it has the makings of a policy disaster for the NHS and, maybe in time, a political disaster for the government."

While reform was a "constant necessity" in the NHS, Mr Milburn said its cause had been set back by weaknesses in Health Secretary Andrew Lansley's original blueprint, which he described as a "foolish bout of policy-wonking".

He added: "The promise of the coalition was that it would go where New Labour feared to tread when it came to public service reform. There would be no no-go areas.

"In fact David Cameron's retreat has taken his party to a far less reformist and more protectionist position than that adopted by Tony Blair and even that of his predecessor Gordon Brown."

He described the new policy as the "biggest nationalisation" since the NHS was created in 1948 and said overall control had been handed to a body - the NHS Commissioning Board - which was "the daddy of all quangos".

Mr Milburn, who left Parliament at the 2010 election, said scrapping the 2013 deadline for giving GP consortia control of commissioning would result in a "patchwork of decision-making for years to come".

'Open goal'

On the need to make ?20bn in efficiency savings, he said it would fall to the taxpayer to pick up the bill.

"It was precisely the situation David Cameron and George Osborne were trying to avoid. Sorry George, but the cash you were saving in your pre-election Budget for tax cuts will now have to be spent on a bail-out for the health service."

Continue reading the main story

It is time for politicians to get out of the NHS and give us some space to actually get on and run the service”

End Quote Professor Steve Field NHS Future Forum He described the current situation regarding public service reform as "an open goal for Ed Miliband's Labour Party" but warned the leadership about its own reaction to the NHS climbdown.

He added: "The temptation, of course, is for Labour to retreat to the comfort zone of public sector producer-interest protectionism - and there were signs of that in the party's response to the government's U-turn this week.

"It would be unwise, in my view, for Labour to concede rather than contest the reform territory. It now has an opportunity to restake its claim to be the party of progressive, radical reform."

'Necessary evolution'

The head of the NHS Future Forum, which examined the government's plans as part of its recent "listening exercise", criticised Mr Milburn's remarks.

"He is wrong and it is time for politicians to get out of the NHS and give us some space to actually get on and run the service," Professor Steve Field told the health select committee.

"I would like to see the bill passed as quickly as possible, amended to make it work."

A government source said: "Eight years ago Alan Milburn tried to reform the NHS but failed to deliver the progress necessary because he was blocked by Gordon Brown.

"Other former Labour health ministers - and many professional bodies - support these reforms as a necessary evolution. We can't afford to miss another opportunity to improve the NHS."

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Banking whistleblower forecasts second crash

23 May 2011 Last updated at 10:11 GMT Paul Moore fears a second banking crash unless action is taken Paul Moore was sacked when he told his bosses at the HBOS bank that lending billions to people who could not afford to pay the money back was a risk which would lead to disaster.

That was in 2004.

Within four years HBOS had to be pulled back from the brink of bankruptcy with a huge injection of taxpayers' cash and a shotgun marriage with the much larger Lloyds Group.

During that time Paul Moore, who had been the executive in charge of risk management at the bank's West Yorkshire headquarters in Halifax, had been unemployed and sitting at home in North Yorkshire.

His former employer had given him a six figure financial settlement on condition that he never spoke about the warnings he had given of impending financial meltdown before the crash.

But in 2009 he could keep his silence no longer.

Financial sector shocked

He was incensed when all the banks involved in what had turned out to be the biggest financial crisis since the 1920s told the UK's financial regulators that there had been no warning of the crash which had been caused by dubious lending in the United States.

When MPs on the Treasury Select Committee announced they were to investigate the banks, he became a high profile "whistleblower".

His evidence shocked the financial sector and even rattled the Prime Minister Gordon Brown who had been left to pick up the pieces of a shattered economy.

Paul Moore's evidence forced the resignation of the HBOS chief executive who had sacked him at the bank.

As for Moore himself the months since then have proved difficult.

Depression and anger

He was cold shouldered by many in the banking and finance industry who did not like him displaying its dirty washing in public.

He freely admits that he was depressed and started drinking far too much for his own good.

Two years on his depression has once more turned to anger.

Banking whistleblower's depression has turned to anger

He is concerned that despite promises of action both Labour and coalition governments have not curbed the excesses of the banks.

He is forecasting a second crash unless something is done now.

The Politics Show has been following him for the past few weeks as he prepares to launch a public campaign for more responsible banking.

Moore has held meetings in the city of London attended by investment professionals, bankers and financial journalists.

He wants stronger regulation to ensure that banks lend for sound financial reasons rather than to artificially boost profits.

'Casino gambling' hived-off

He says top executives should have a much stronger legal duty of care so that they can not cover up decisions which take unreasonable risks.

"Casino gambling" by the investment arms of the banks should be separated off from the vital bread-and-butter work of personal banking, mortgages and loans to business.

Banks should ensure they have much bigger capital reserves to cushion them against bad debts.

Individual banks would not comment on the Moore campaign which will soon kick off with an online petition appealing for support from the general public.

The British Bankers' Association, which represents the industry, told me that some of his criticisms would have been true "four or five years ago".

Bankers' denial

But the Association's spokesman Peter Hills assured me that the banking houses have now been put in order.

He flatly denied any suggestion that unless extra regulations are introduced a second banking crisis is on the way.

But the Bankers' Association seems to be swimming against the tide.

The government has set up the the Independent Banking Commission under Sir John Vickers and it has just issued an interim report calling for a "chinese wall" between investment and commercial banking.

Banking club 'strong'

It says there should be no more taxpayer's bailouts and ordinary banking should not become more expensive to pay for any losses made on risky investments.

Its full recommendations to government will be made in September 2011.

One thing has clearly not changed.

The power of the banking industry "club" is still as strong.

Among the insiders attending the initial meetings organised to start Paul Moore's campaign there were those anxious to retain their anonymity.

It might not do their future job prospects any good to be hobnobbing with a banking "whistleblower".

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