Yesterday, before campaigning was temporarily suspended because of the horrific events in Manchester, in Wales, the Prime Minister came close to being involved in a fearsome car-crash, of course, one of her own making it must be said.
For practically the first time in this tedious election campaign, during a speech, and having talked about my manifesto, before relenting and calling it ours, - of course meaning the party's - Theresa May dramatically applied the brakes and U-turned, mid-campaign on a key issue; that of provisions for personal Care of the elderly.
Later in the speech, visibly frustrated and somewhat tetchy, she assured her audience that, 'nothing had changed, nothing had changed,' about a cap on charges for those needing treatment for old age, infirmity or dementia, and any resultant medical care thereafter.
In 1948 the then Labour Government set up the basics of the current Welfare State, although there have been many changes since the same principles apply, a cradle to the grave system, where neither financial or medical needs would depend on contributions received, clearly relevant at the time, but sadly no longer fit for the purposes of today.
So, What's the problem?
Frankly, we all are! The simple truth is that we were not meant to live as long as we are doing. At most it was the Biblically allotted 4 score years and ten, then that was us, a few years at least of pottering in the garden or checking the stamp collection, the best you could expect. In 1948 Britain was still a heavily industrialised society, of diesel-spewing, coal coughing, asbestos ladened death, which has all changed. You were not expected to live to the ages that are being achieved now, where any baby male or female born today can fully expect to see 100 without much of a problem. So not just Theresa May, but any Government from now till doomsday must see Healthcare as the highest priority they have.
No one administration has faced up to it yet and the pressure-cooker is going to explode and explode real soon.
Crisis
The National Health Service was once the envy of the World and one many a democracy modeled their own healthcare systems on. Now there is crisis everywhere, a chronic shortage of GP's is one thing, as younger doctors shun the profession to find lucrative employment in either the private sector or the specialties. Nurses to have become a premium, leaving in droves, because of poor pay and crippling conditions, never to return.
For years these problems have been ignored, and certainly, as the cracks are now showing certainly to our detriment and peril.