Tell us what you think

Woman with megaphone in a crowd

Why do you want to see public services run for people not profit? Tell us your story here.

We'll use your comments to help make the case for public ownership - look out for your thoughts on our homepage!

Thanks for telling us what you think.

Photo used under Creative Commons licensing, thanks to anw.fr.

Comments

George W Fogg replied on Permalink

Privatisation of public services was, and, remains a con trick. When people bought shares in services they already owned. Imagine someone knocking on your door offering to sell you your own car. People who bought shares should be ashamed of their stupidity and greed

Jon Preston replied on Permalink

Buses. No mention of electric buses.

This is a key part missing on the buses strategy and that is the use of bus stations, public buildings and multi-storey car parks, owned by councils to provide the solar pv needed to charge electic buses. Charging buses up on cheap overnight electricity for wind and selling much of the solar pv back during peak demand should be a net positive to facilitate a transition to electric transport. ( The use of solar pv in the daytime reduces the exorbitant subsidy paid to gas fired power stations).

Charging council, or other public service owned electric vehicles further reduces the need for individual ownership of cars. (80% of which are on some sort of lease hire / hire purchase model)

That should go a little way to helping councils develop local ownership.

Charge points at bus stations, schools, colleges, hospitals, council buildings and near multistorey car parks would permit husge savings on fuel and reduce air pollution. (How much do the NHS services pay for taxi services to and from hospital?)

The UK government has been taken to the courts three times on their failure to address air pollution. Providing electric buses to take over the school run would help reduce the exposure of children to air pollution.

Staggering school runs for example at 8:30 and 9:00 would ensure more impact could be made on air pollution with fewer buses at least initially.

Air pollution aggravates asthma and causes poor lung development.

In older people air pollution increases the risk of cardio-vascular problems such as hearth attacks and strokes and raises the risk of asthma attacks.

The failure to deal with air pollution is not only a climate and health problem it is also an occupational health problem. In other words it should be very much in the interest of the unions to raise these issues.

John Archibald ... replied on Permalink

My article for Publicly Owned Railways

There’s a mountain of reasons why privatisation can’t work and why the Government admitted in 1865 that Nationalisation was an option to homogenise the disorderly rail systems. But having worked for BR, SAR and the NRZ as a Traction and Rolling Stock Engineer and having witnessed rail travel here in the late 50’s when it was cheaper and faster than bus car or truck. And in times of ticket sales exceeding seating capacity, the station pilot would simply shunt on two or more coaches to accommodate this demand on the 8:30 (to wherever) and a standby locomotive would double head the train away at 8:30 – and all this was done with no computers or other digital coms! Had BR been given a free reign and the politicians supported our State Run Railway, we would have gold plated rails and executive class travel for all on TGV style trains and propped up the NHS to boot with the revenues BR had!

It’s a similar situation in Germany and France btw, although the general public in these countries are now being taken for a ride too! But sadly for us the die was cast in 1955 with the modernisation policy the corrupt Tory Government devised. Its aim was simple: increase road use and disseminate rail! Why? Because oil and Natural Gas was coming on tap and society was being emancipated form totalitarian rule to; perceived democracy freedom and a better life.

So much so that in the blink of an eye our railway system was more than halved and given to Souter Branson et al for free by their buddy Tory B. Thus Public Ownership and operational control is not only pragmatic, it’s the only option we have to restore common sense for the benefit of the many and to give our children the railway we paid for.

Jim McNeill replied on Permalink

Hi...I was wondering if one could buy 'we own it' or 'nationalisation' stickers through yourselves ~ or if you know of other suppliers?

Cheers

Biba replied on Permalink

Hello Jim,

Thank you for your message. Great to hear you want some stickers. We don't actually have any at the moment i'm afraid, but we are working on opening a shop online soon which you will be able to get these sorts of resources from as well as t-shirts.

Keep up to date with our email newsletter and we will make sure to give you all the information on there when the shop is ready.

Best wishes,

Biba from the We Own It team

John Archibald replied on Permalink

The choice is simple; Either keep believing the state propaganda and swallow the crap meted out by our undemocratically elected politicians and their system of corrupt governance; watching our public utilities get worse, become more unaffordable and let our children become poorer. As they will saddle generations for thousands of years to pay for the waste, poisoning, or the fallout from the mass destruction of nuclear fission, in a World stripped of oil, gas, coal and wood. Our stand up, unite and take Public Control of our strategic services and give our children a sustainable World to inherit!

So, count me in to help run our strategic utilities! But I’d suggest we do it on a pro rata basis, i.e. relative to earnings/taxation/ability. I’d lay odds on that within a year the greedy anti socialists will come running in their droves to join us as they desert the mirage of a their God “Dream”! As that’s all it is - unless one’s born with a silver spoon in one’s mouth, or they steel it from the poor, infirmed and the many who are frightened to fight back, albeit for good reason – they won’t divvy out their bullets and WMD’s are a No No too!

John B Harries-... replied on Permalink

We are a Socialist country. That means we are people of interlinked communities. We are families and friends that help and support each other. What we do together has nothing to do with the American dream of monetary gain. We pool our resources and put them to the use of all. Big business or private companies, are built on the ideal of gain and profit by subscription.

The NHS, is about health, from birth to death. Its funding is from taxation and investment, and from public donations. It is not a business, it is more than that. It is unique and British and Ubique in our society of British values. Capitalist politicians have tainted and destroyed it by their meddling,.

John B Harries ... replied on Permalink

Hi. It is important that the NHS, is public, because it belongs to everyone in the UK. It is there, not to be interfered with, to make money, by zelots and capitalists. It is a Social Service, not a money bandwagon.

Tricia Duncan replied on Permalink

Privatisation has seen the worsening of public services and since the Tory government cuts it has become even worse because a profit must be made. Time to take them back, provide a good service and give employees decent wages and employment rights.

NHSfighter replied on Permalink

https://www.ipevents.net/healthinvestorawards/ The Presidents' Ball for those looking to privatise the NHS. This year multiple organisations will be protesting outside this event with news agencies covering the protest

DEZ replied on Permalink

Transfers to private ownership are generally sold to public authorities as being a more cost effective and efficient way of running services. To reinforce the so called benefits the procurement usually show a cost saving on existing costs which eventually secures the total disruption of shutting down the well tried existing services to prevent reinstatement and then the poor and substandard services start. This disaster decision inevitably culminating in not having enough profit to pay for fat cat useless directors and of course the shareholders cut and the inevitable walk away or worse begging letter under blackmail circumstances of walking away leaving the usual mess to clear up. This is where the NHS is heading under Hunts so called privatised leadership and should be stopped before to late......but greed of course will win through

Martin Rudland replied on Permalink

Please note & publicise 2 important effects of the H&SC Act2012.

One is that it TAKES AWAY THE GOVERNMENT'S RESPONSIBILITY for the public's health,

and the other one is that it requires the NHS TO PUT EVERY CONTRACT OUT TO TENDER !

The former enables PRIVATISATION to occur. AND the outcome of that is that some of the money that the NHS would use for clinical work then goes to Private Company Executives and Shareholders, ie the NHS funding is not what we are led to understand.

For example consider an NHS annual budget of £120 billion that is 50% privatised and that the private ‘health’ companies divert 40% of the contract to Executives/Shareholders. The Nett Effect is that £24 billion of NHS annual budget does not go into clinical work! We can then say that the REAL NHS (clinical) annual budget is only £96 billion NOT £120 billion. £96 billion compares very poorly with THE ANNUAL HEALTH BUDGET of equivalent countries !

The latter, ie our NHS tendering for work previously automatically done in-house, has been calculated as causing an admin cost of anything from £4.7bn to £9.7bn. That money is lost from the NHS clinical budget!

No wonder the NHS has problems, apart from top management which seems incompetent & overpaid AND in place to aid the government’s undermining of OUR NHS .

Jack H replied on Permalink

Nationalised industries are run not for the benefit of consumers of those services but for the benefit of the inevitably highly unionised work forces that end up in charge due to the pressure on the government in power. Train tickets are expensive but mass transport systems are and subsidies to the trains in the UK are the lowest in Europe i.e those who use a service pay for most of it, shock horror.

People talk of nationalisation putting power back in the hands of 'the people' and by this they mean the unions and the government, with the latter ending up running it for the benefit of the former and not the consumer. People forget how shit and unsafe train services were under BR, just like how they quite often forget how the NHS regularly scores bottom of the table in Commonwealth Fund on comparative health outcomes- http://www.commonwealthfund.org/~/media/files/publications/fund-report/2017/jul/schneider_mirror_mirror_2017.pdf, page 5, exhibit 2.

Robert Upton replied on Permalink

People or profit this government is about profit enough said

Jon Westoby replied on Permalink

I've never thought privatisation was a sensible idea. It subscribes to the dumbest of dogmas. But I would value seeing a costed way back. Handing natural monopolies to the private sector has denuded public authorities of expertise and capital investment, making privatisation very much a one way street - an urgent reason to do no more of it.

And one more comment. It's easy to see what has to be done; remember - people have to do it. When I look at our current crop of politicians, I struggle to discover anyone above mediocre. Not a statesman in sight. Do we really want the people who are making such a Horlicks of Brexit (or their adversaries) to render our services completely FUBAR?

Veronica-Mae Soar replied on Permalink

Some one needs to explain to me. We own it ? public ownership ? What does that mean in practice? If we all had shares or it was a co-operative I could understand it. But public ownership just seems to mean that government of the day is in charge. And if they suddenly find they don't have the cash for this or that they could close it down and where would we be ? I would not trust the government to organise a bun fight in a bakery How can we expect them to organise hundreds and hundreds of public services and not lose money hand over fist - or seriously lower standards ?

Tony Barrable replied on Permalink

This is as simple as saying, do you want your services, which you pay for, working for you and the intetest of the many? or being ripped off by private companies in the interest of profit?

Paul Martin replied on Permalink

Just watched Renegade on RT about the railways, wish you every success in your quest for justice.

Ron Branton replied on Permalink

Chris Grayling - Like most current MPs this guy has no clue whatsoever what he is doing, I have grand kids with more intelligence than this. One of the richest men in the world who spends a fortune trying to find God in space, and this silly little individual wants to bail him out?? I really wonder what planet some of these people come from. The point is our governing system is totally broken and needs a complete re-think. We squander 12 billion a year on global aid ( which is ring fenced ) and we are in such a mess. No words to explain it.

Bob replied on Permalink

I know it's hard to think back all those years to Beaching closing the majority of Railway Stations and Lines, but, is this why we're going through this now, because some toffee nosed privateer is wanting to cash in on our monies again. The smile on Branson's face is obvious to me, he's making it big business. I'm sorry to say, but, I have a virgin media email address and it kills me to have it. He cashed in on our area because we can't receive a decent digital or terrestrial signal for media. So in a way my contact with 'WE OWN IT' is his own doing.. I love it! Stop the money grabber, Please!!

John replied on Permalink

I think it is scandalous that we allow private enterprise to take over or railways which we have developed and built over many years. These private companies make many promises only to break them and leave us funding the bill. Bring the railways back into public hands where we have control and benefit fully.

david homer replied on Permalink

I work for RM and the atmosphere amongst the workforce is toxic.Privatisation has destroyed a brilliant public service.It started with the cut price sell off where the spivs and speculators made millions overnight and continues with the selling off of all the valuable property assets to line the pockets of the wealthy.

The workload imposed on staff now would test an athlete, terms and conditions are under severe attack and the service quality has reduced significantly, Xmas mail failing for the first time in my memory this year.

The few shares we were given in an attempt to pacify us are nothing compared to the loss of job satisfaction and worsening working conditions.

From the first to the most recent the effects of privatisation are the same and I can't think of one which wouldn't be better back in the public sector.

All power to your campaign

D Homer

david homer replied on Permalink

I work for RM and the atmosphere amongst the workforce is toxic.Privatisation has destroyed a brilliant public service.It started with the cut price sell off where the spivs and speculators made millions overnight and continues with the selling off of all the valuable property assets to line the pockets of the wealthy.

The workload imposed on staff now would test an athlete, terms and conditions are under severe attack and the service quality has reduced significantly, Xmas mail failing for the first time in my memory this year.

The few shares we were given in an attempt to pacify us are nothing compared to the loss of job satisfaction and worsening working conditions.

From the first to the most recent the effects of privatisation are the same and I can't think of one which wouldn't be better back in the public sector.

All power to your campaign

D Homer

david smith replied on Permalink

No one suggests to the Swiss that chopping railways into fragments and selling them to foreign owners will improve them. I wonder why not?

David Monckton replied on Permalink

The whole essence of the We Own It Campaign is something I've been telling friends, colleagues and family Members about for years. Before I even knew about We Own It! It's so positive to find out that an intelligently run organisation exists that intelligently and objectively opposes the running of vital public services for private shareholders and directors personal gain. I have said for years that you cannot expect decent re-investment and higher standards of service when profit making is the sole interest of those who have shares in the service, and this has proven to be true time and time again. I have worked for the NHS for nearly twenty years and seen our estates and facilities services, occupational health department and procurement services all fall into the hands of privately run and owned companies with the assurance that they will be more efficiently run and better service provided. My experience is that they have always cost the NHS more money and Services are not as good to put it mildly. We had a patient couch in one of our clinics fail recently. When we used our own estates department of NHS employees this would have been remedied almost immediately, now we use Avensis this couch took over 3 months to fix, reducing our patient contacts by a third in our 3 chair clinic and was only eventually fixed after tens of phone calls to chase the job up. No apology was received from said company either.

Bridget Green replied on Permalink

Thank you for an amazing speech last night at the Labour Rally in West Bromwich. It was so great to see a young woman with so much passion and talking complete sense. I just hope we can make the changes

John Spicer replied on Permalink

Hi I have followed your work for nearly 2 years, I am a great believer in nationalized industries. As a 70 year old I can remember when this country was properly run, for the good of the people., NOT FOR THE GOOD OF THE DIRTY CAPITALIST WITH THERE SNOUTS IN THE TROUGH. Thatcherism was a crime against the people of this country as was membership of EEC and later the EU. All Industries in the Public domain in in 11950 should be returned their without payment.

Robert Gaukroger replied on Permalink

I came across your post about Mike Dwan, the man who was reported to have amassed a personal wealth of over £75 Million from PFI and the many schemes sucking funds from what should be spent on state schools directly, I have come across Mr Dwan around 2007/8 he is a controlling man with the only thought on his mind of what’s in it for him.

I made a grave error and sent my children to the prep school in Windermere before Mr Dwan moved from Manchester to Windermere. He brought his children to the prep school while I was working free of charge to design and delivery the pod classroom project at the prep school to get some publicity for the architectural project , I donated one pod classroom to the school: My regret is I didn’t donate that pod to a state school and not Windermere school, I spent nearly a year offering my services free to get the project off the ground. A few months after the project was due to complete Mr Dwan had wormed his way onto the board of Governors within months of him arriving at the school. He soon had arranged a meeting with myself to inform me he was now in control of the project I designed. Behold within weeks he had his own contractors installing the foundations sucking out funds from the project. I completed the project just; by sticking to my guns and holding Mr Dwan over a barrel with the building Certificate as I had applied for the permission in my name, he had no choice but to allow me to complete the project. Needless to say 2 weeks after the project completed Mr Dwan and his followers made sure my children wouldn’t be able stay at the school as we had purchased items including furniture out of my own pocket and he wouldn’t approved the repayment and we couldn’t afford to stay. The school project featured on Grand designs. My children went on to get a good state school education. I fully intend to recover my time spent on Windermere School project and recover the donated pod building.

Robert Gaukroger

Robert Hall replied on Permalink

Access to legal help is denied in civil cases because the fees are punitive: £300 plus an hour. Public ownership options:- 1)Legal aid for those below an income level of,say £80,000, should be provided by lawyers, funded from their charges to rich clients. 2) Punitive taxes on legal fees over an affordable amount, say £50 per hour, would drive down the costs. 3). Like care, legal advice and help should be funded from taxation and fees controlled by the state. There would be no opting-out provision

Keith replied on Permalink

Well done, Cat. The Climb Down on NHS professionals,

and We Own It's part in it, is being celebrated all over the

internet.

Keith

David Warren replied on Permalink

Really pleased to have found your campaign and I wish you every success. Having supported someone who had home and then residential care over a ten year period I have witnessed at first hand the failings in the Adult Social Care set up. The care workers are exploited and the elderly vulnerable people are not getting the support they need. The only ones doing well out of the system are the overpaid bureaucrats in local authorities and the private care companies. Adult Social Care needs to be publicly funded and run as it was back in the time before privatisation.

Jeanne Jackson replied on Permalink

Governments need to understand the public have less and less me,me,me thinking....I recently found out there are over 200 MP's in parliament and more in the House of Lords with their fingers in private/big pharma pies.

Phil replied on Permalink

I listened to the Radio 4 interview; the interviewer was provocative in suggesting you want to punish shareholders and I think you kept your cool really nicely.I thought my personal example might be worth recounting. It represents beautifully the issue of carefully analysing what the utilities may be handing back to the Government if your cause succeeds. In fact it raises the spectre that the shareholders may WANT to hand the utilities back because they have a major debt issue on the horizon. Certainly in my personal case; here's how it goes...

I am fortunate to live on a smallholding alongside a public reservoir in Cornwall. That reservoir was built in 1941 for the local town (Falmouth) water supply.It was built by compulsory purchase of farmland and the terms of the purchase included an obligation to erect and maintain a stockproof perimeter fence where no natural boundary existed.That obligation was on the Town Council and "its successors in title". Forever!(in perpetuity).

I have lived here 25+years. Originally South West Water employed a resident warden for this and 2 neighbouring reservoirs. He lived in a cottage owned by the company at the edge of the reservoir.Our fence - like literally tens-if not hundreds- of miles of fencing around South West reservoirs is concrete posts with chainlink fence strung tight between. He used to mow and strim and tighten up 3 times a year.With privatisation approximately 20 years ago he retired(maybe offered /enforced redundancy -I do not know). His cottage was auctioned off to a private buyer. Interestingly a levy was added to all of our water bills in the South West for "public recreation provision". This was managed by the creation of South West Lakes CHARITABLE Trust whose remit I now know also included maintainence of the Estates. The Trust is funded by South West Water and employs many volunteers. I do not claim to understand the flow of money but what I do know is that either the Trust or South West Water came and planted trees all around the reservoir approx 15 years ago. A huge EU subsidy was claimed. And that was the last we ever saw of anybody!

I continued to manage my pastureland on my side of the fence but finally 2 years ago the blackthorn growth on the public side started to pull the fence off its top straining wire. My fields were no longer stockproof. I was bounced around between South West Lakes Trust and a contractor who it transpires is a private self- employed person working to a budget handed down by South West Lakes Trust. He came within a whisker of putting in a fence with scaffold poles hammered into the ground stating he could not get concrete posts. In fairness waht he meant was he could't get them within the constraints of the budget handed down by the S W Lakes Trust.In frustration ( a member of the public walking their dog kindly came up one day to say one of our stock was grazing under the top strainer wire- 2 feet in my field 2 feet on the reservoir land-) I demanded to speak to a lawyer at South West Water.Basically I felt I was being messed around.She rang me back within an hour and had checked her legal details and said that the obligation was on her company to maintain a 5 foot high stockproof stone hedge.Still nothing was done but she authorised payment of the cost of my repairing the hole- 35 pounds for a man with a chainsaw . I supplied some wire free of charge.

I eventually sought legal advice. My solicitor checked our Deeds at the bank and said it was clear; the obligation was for the Water Authority and their successors in title to do as the lawyer had suggested. I spoke to the Chief Exec S W Lakes Trust.He sent his Estates manager who said they couldn't afford concrete posts and chainlink let alone a hugely expensive stone hedge. I pointed out that they had saved 20 years of maintenence costs and this was a chicken coming home to roost.I said the chainlink fence had been fine and if it had been maintained would still be.I would accept a new concrete posts/ chainlink fence.

And that is what is soon to be erected.

This scenario will be repeated across many miles of reservoir fencing. It is a huge capital expense looming on the horizon.Especially if - subsequent to the Brexit process- farmers are encouraged to restock their fields.Let's hope that it is taken into account literally by anybody valuing the Water companies in the event of a Government buyback.

All the best

kidron marx replied on Permalink

public services include public housing, decimated by thatcher's so called right-to-buy, and the evil assured short hold tenancy that allows landlords to evict on 28 day notice. the right to buy should either apply equally in the private sector, or be scrapped. Blair promised its capital receipts would be returned to LAs for housebuilding. PFI projects are the hugest rip-off of which Grenfell is an example, along with countless others, where for example hospital trusts are crippled by 30 year repayment contracts for defective buildings and infrastructure. This is Thatcher's Britain - it is pure evil

Rose replied on Permalink

I fully support having an NHS without private enterprise taking our money as profit. This includes GP practices. There is no point in talk ing to my MP because she is a tory and does not care about the NHS.

Iain Hoy replied on Permalink

I have always been a firm believer that the sale of public services as a bad idea. Engineered by the banks to reduce money going back into the public purse. Which meant the government has to generate more debt by borrowing to shore up the shortfall. Plus, also reaping the benefits of large amounts in share dividends. What better to sell off than services the public cannot do without on a daily basis. It is pretty much bringing America to it's knees, and it will do exactly the same here if nothing is addressed.

People may be interested in the article in The Independent by John McDonell MP on privatisation. It shows just how self serving and poorly managed public services have been run since being privatised. I was going to post a link but the filter would not allow me to.

chris walton replied on Permalink

As a dialysis patient I am a regular NHS user. My dialysis unit is run by a private firm who are paid a negotiated amount by the NHS. There is a Patient Board of which I am a member, I realise profit has to be made and I am there to ensure quality of service is also maintained for patients, give and take so to speak. I have to admit that this works, the quality of care is better than one would get in an NHS owned and run unit and there is a saving to be made too.

I feel that whatever is sold off there should be a patient representative board to keep costs down and also dividends too and to ensure quality of care is exceptional.

Robin Fielder replied on Permalink

When a Tory tried to canvas me at the recent election, I told him "I grew up with the formation of the Welfare State, and was really proud of it as a boy, but ever since then "You Lot" have systematically tried to dismantle it..." He went off with his tail between his legs.

Sadly, North East Derbyshire was one of the handful of Labour seats that went Tory for the first time for decades. Mainly because the UKIP vote went Tory.

Joy Morby replied on Permalink

I'm so chuffed you started we own it! I have watched our public services being given away at a terrfying rate for over 30 years. We have been taken for a ride by both major parties in that time. Blair really disappointed me. Thanks for being there.

Dan Spence replied on Permalink

Regarding the sale of NHS professionals. I am an employee of NHS professionals and when my team were left with no choice but to sign up to NHS professionals for our overtime we were promised that this was not a private entity but was a part of the NHS and would remain so. This government are selling it off as it has potential to make money for the highest bidder. The profits (if there are any) should be reinvested into the NHS not line the pockets of stakeholders.

david lewis replied on Permalink

please expose the criminal act of the goverment selling OUR plasma supplies to usa republican mitt romney for 230million who then sold it on to a chinese company for 830million, this has got to be exposed,it is our donated blood

Robin Moss replied on Permalink

Happy to support, very much agree - Robin Moss, Labour candidate NE Somerset UK GE 2017

Anthea replied on Permalink

It's great people like you exist! It's important to show there's an alternative to privatisation. We've been so brainwashed into thinking privatisation equated with efficiency and good management, but a fresh look at public ownership is now I feel what's needed. Public services should definitely be run for people, not for profit.

We need to give public ownership a strong new positive image, showing that these days things CAN be done better & more efficiently for the benefit of people. We must overcome the view that public ownership is an outdated, tried & failed, backwards step...

Dr.R.L.Symonds replied on Permalink

Here is a quote from my friend Dr. David Playfair who lives in Canada, regarding his post office:

"There are two reasons why I send paper packages. Firstly, it gives me an opportunity to chat to our village's lady postmaster about what the British post-office did when e-mails reduced the number of letters. Savings bank loans, driving licenses, passports etc etc. She sighs. 'If only our post office would do that - but then the commercial interests would oppose.' Maybe she'll pass the thought on to her Union . . ."

Ian replied on Permalink

The Shareholders are the real winners in all the rail franchises as they will never lose. MPs and their friends are the shareholders and making a lovely risk free income. Yes, I would like to see the railways in public hands but not as it was in the old BR days. The local authorities should be running the rail companies in their areas

Colin Bissell replied on Permalink

I lived, in 1938/39 in a terrace of just 18 houses. During the 18 months to the start of WW2, three old people at that time in their 50s and 60s, died without being able to afford a doctor. None had reached pensionable age, 65, so did not receive the 10/- (50p) pension; all were working until the time of illness.

Although only aged 5 and 6 I never have forgotten parents and neighbours in discussing each case were appalled that their spouses had not said anything. Had they done whiprounds would have been held to raise money for treatment.

The profit before treatment of privatization could, probably would bring back death through poverty.

Steve Turner replied on Permalink

I'm 67, much the same age as the NHS. Since I left school in the mid 60's, I've seen governments of every stripe (and demonstrated against most of them! ) We thought Thatcher was bad but compared to this lot, I'm not so sure now.

Pete Alty replied on Permalink

I've witnessed privatisation of public services since it all began in the 1980s with BT, water, energy and bus deregulation. It didn't make sense then and it still doesn't now: service has declined, particularly for the less wealthy; pay and conditions for workers have deteriorated; and valuable public assets have been handed over on the cheap to private individuals, companies and outsourcing agencies whose values do not correspond with those needed to successfully provide all of society's members with the services they need. Short-term financial gain cannot and does not sustain long-term service provision, organisation and development. The current government is fundamentally opposed to state provision of public services, putting the NHS in grave danger, so this makes the work of "We Own It" absolutely vital.

Norman Anderson replied on Permalink

I would just like a proper public bus service in our village please

We can't get to a local village market which is about 3 miles away.

We can't get to the doctor's surgery in the next village and that is about 1 & 1/2 miles away.

We can't get to a chemist shop/pharmacy in the next village about 2 miles away

We can't get to a Post Office because that's in the next village about 1 & 1/2 miles away.

Our village shops are :-

one kebab shop

one tea shop

2 closed down shops

Forgive me for not getting too excited about bans on new bus companies.

Norm

Karen Roscoe replied on Permalink

In Sheffield, the council has contracted Amey to chop down a huge number of trees. The reasons for almost all the "killings" just don't stand up in any way......bumpy pavements (it's actually companies like Amey & utilities that dig holes and poorly repair afterwards that cause most problems), can't afford to look after the trees (but can afford huge teams to chop them down!) etc etc. Sheffield was one of greenest cities in Europe, trees save us from effects of pollution etc but one small area of Sheffield lost 160 trees.....ONE HUNDRED & SIXTY! Read it and weep because they're just keeping on doing it and we can't stop them. THEY ARE OUR TREES.

This was what I put in my survey & I was heartened to receive an email from Weownit commenting on the matter. We have STAG in Sheffield....a group who are trying to stop this senseless destruction but people are getting arrested for peacefully protesting. It's all just WRONG.

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