Lib Dem unrest over NHS reforms

Liberal Democrat leaders are trying to douse a growing revolt over the coalition’s controversial NHS reforms. Party critics claim the reforms will increase health inequalities, make tracts of the NHS unviable and simply provide profits for private firms asked to take on the task of commissioning care. The backlash comes as figures show the reforms will cost £1.8bn to implement. The Department of Health today revealed it had sought authorisation from parliament to set the money aside to cover redundancy payments, pension liabilities and the penalties of breaking contractual obligations of the primary care trusts that will be abolished under the plans. But the political backlash poses the greatest risk for the coalition as Lib Dem rebels attempt to raise it at their spring conference next month. Privately many cabinet members have doubts about the politics of coalition health reforms, if not the reforms themselves, and rejection of them by one wing of the coalition would only increase those doubts. – the Guardian

No to AV… because it’s too expensive…

These are not easy times in Britain. There is much to preoccupy the Coalition, not least the parlous state of the economy. The decision to hold a referendum on a change of voting system must, therefore, be viewed as an unnecessary distraction from more pressing matters. The vote will take place on May 5, the same day as local contests in England and Wales and elections to the Welsh Assembly and the Scottish Parliament. It is a price to be paid for the Liberal Democrats’ agreement to enter the Coalition, though whether the referendum will do anything to prolong that union must be doubtful – the campaign will pit the two parties in government against each other. – the Telegraph

NICK Clegg’s crusade to change the way Brits vote will cost taxpayers £250 MILLION, figures reveal today. The bill is enough to pay for 8,000 extra nurses, 7,500 troops or 5,000 cops. Deputy PM Mr Clegg, backed by Labour leader Ed Miliband, wants the controversial alternative vote – or AV – system. The proposed spending spree to introduce it will trigger furious protests as millions of families are hit by swingeing cuts. The cost will be exposed today at the launch of the No to AV campaign, which aims to keep the traditional first-past-the-post voting system. A referendum on change will cost £82 MILLION – with another £9 MILLION for “voter education” in the run-up. Up to £130 MILLION will be needed for electronic machines to count voters’ alternative choices of candidate if AV is introduced. – the Sun

Switching from X to 1, 2, 3 voting might cost £250 million, say the No campaign, if you were to decide it would need “expensive counting machines”, double the number you first thought of (by chucking the referendum costs which apply whether we vote Yes or No too), and then ignore the fact that they count the AV votes by hand in Australia. QED. Still, the Daily Mail and Telegraphtried to take it seriously. The AV referendum gives us a democratic choice about whether we think our democracy would be better if we could express multiple preferences – voting 1, 2, 3 – under AV, or should keep X voting under first-past-the-post. There are arguments for and against this change. In a democracy, whether Britain could afford to count the votes really isn’t one of them. – Next Left

Private firms not volunteers joining Dave’s big society

David Cameron’s attempt to relaunch his Big Society agenda hit trouble on several fronts yesterday as it emerged that American firms could take over the running of libraries in Britain. The Prime Minister made a passionate defence of his flagship scheme, admitting it would not make him popular or win elections. However, his pledge that the Big Society was not a cover for big spending cuts was undermined by growing evidence that private firms rather than voluntary groups could land many of the new contracts to run public services. – Independent

Trainee pilots to be dumped

The MoD said last year’s strategic defence and security review (SDSR) had already outlined cost-cutting measures in the forces. A spokesman said: “The SDSR has already made clear there will be a reduction in the number of assets and airframes across all three services, and that the RAF would be reduced by around 5,000 personnel to a total of about 33,000 by 2015. ”However, any reductions in the RAF will not affect operations in Afghanistan and priority areas of capability will not be compromised.” The Telegraph said head of training Air Vice Marshal Mark Green would visit each of the RAF’s three flying schools to pass on the news. Up to 20 fast jet pilots, 30 helicopter pilots and 50 transport aircraft pilots are said to face the axe. Meanwhile, the Times has reported that the cost of scrapping military equipment as a result of the SDSR was £12bn. –BBC

Hardly a week goes by without fresh evidence that the Strategic Defence and Security Review announced last year was rushed and poorly thought through. From the premature retirement of the Harrier jump jets, whose flexibility will be sorely missed, to the near-vandalism of scrapping the new generation of Nimrod reconnaissance planes before they had even flown a single mission, the consequences have been both perverse and potentially calamitous to the nation’s security. Today, our defence correspondent reports that a quarter of RAF trainee pilots are to be cut in a cull costing the taxpayer hundreds of millions of pounds that will leave the service short of fliers. Many of the trainees who are to be told they are surplus to requirements are close to completing their courses. – the Telegraph

Job losses to rise

Redundancies are set to rise sharply in the next few months as public sector cuts bite, a survey has suggested. The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development study found redundancy intentions with employers were at their highest level since it began in 2004. Four out of 10 organisations planned redundancies in the first quarter of this year, the survey discovered. These included one-third of NHS employers, half of central government and three-quarters in local government. The organisations affected typically proposed to cut around one in 10 employees, increasing to one in eight in the public sector.

Poll shows AV support increase

Campaigners demanding a change in the voting system for Westminster elections have secured a 10-point lead over opponents, as peers are threatened with losing their holiday if they derail the referendum planned for 5 May. An exclusive poll for The Independent on Sunday reveals 40 per cent of people surveyed now back a switch to the alternative vote (AV), while 30 per cent want to keep first-past-the-post (FPTP). The four-point increase in support for the yes campaign since January comes direct from those who last month responded “don’t know”, suggesting that as the campaigns step up a gear public support for reform is hardening.

Cameron relaunch of Big Society

David Cameron will today relaunch the Big Society as his “mission in politics” in a speech to social entrepreneurs in London. The move comes after several notable figures in the charity and volunteering sectors have criticised the initiative in light of sweeping budget cuts. Liverpool City Council have pulled out of Big Society projects altogether. “Let’s make one thing absolutely clear – I’m not going to back down from what I believe in just because of a few bad headlines”, Mr Cameron is expected to say. To bolster the Big Society, he will unveil a Big Society bank, with £200m to provide capital to support successful applicants to the scheme, and a £100m transition fund will be made available for charities and social enterprises bidding for public services. – PoliticsHome

Balls: PM playing a dangerous game

The shadow chancellor Ed Balls has said the government is playing a “dangerous game” with its spending cuts. He accused David Cameron of taking Britain back to the era of “nasty confrontation” which marked Margaret Thatcher’s years as PM. Mr Balls told the BBC Politics Show North West, the government was mounting a “real assault” on public services. It follows Justice Secretary Kenneth Clarke’s warning that Middle England did not grasp the scale of the cuts. In an interview to be broadcast on Sunday, Mr Balls said the coalition’s leadership was out of touch with the realities of life facing ordinary voters.- BBC

Mr Balls said that the Government was playing a “dangerous game” with its programme of spending cuts, mounting what he described as a “real assault” on public services. His comments, in an interview with the BBC Politics Show North West to be broadcast tomorrow, came as Justice Secretary Kenneth Clarke warned that Middle England did not yet fully understand what was about to hit them. Mr Balls cited an open letter to The Times signed by more than 90 senior Liberal Democrat councillors, complaining that the Government cutting too far, too fast, as evidence of the damage that was being done. He said that the coalition’s top leadership – such as Mr Cameron, Chancellor George Osborne, and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg – were out of touch with the realities of life facing ordinary voters. – the Telegraph

Cameron tries to resuscitate Big Society

David Cameron has launched a defence of the Big Society in an article for the Observer. Responding to a week when the idea faced criticism, the Prime Minister denied the Big Society was a cover for the public spending cuts. He said: “Building a stronger, bigger society is something we should try and do whether spending is going up or down”. But Ed Miliband, writing in the Independent on Sunday has claimed that the Big Society is faltering because David Cameron does not recognise the importance of the state, saying: “The reason why Mr Cameron’s Big Society is in such trouble is not simply because the Government is making painful cuts. The way it is doing it – so far, so fast – speaks to its ideological heart. It really believes that a small state will produce a Big Society.” – PoliticsHome

David Cameron is launching a frantic bid to rescue his much-criticised plan for a “big society” as he promises to back the project with public money and new initiatives to help it survive savage government cuts and public scorn. Writing exclusively for the Observer, the prime minister confronts his critics head on and insists that he will never abandon what he believes is the defining mission of his premiership. Cameron says the big society is not a government initiative, but the opposite – one that will see power handed from Whitehall to the people. “It has the power to transform our country,” he declares. “That is why the big society is here to stay.” – the Guardian

Osborne’s laughable bank deal

The government describes its reform of financial services as a work in progress. But that implies the City will come out of it all looking and behaving differently. Last week, the government announced the results of Project Merlin, a deal between ministers and bankers under which the latter are supposed to lend more to UK businesses and pay themselves less. They did indeed agree to extend more credit to businesses, but with no sanction if they fail. Bonuses were largely untouched. Separately, George Osborneannounced a hike in the levy he plans to impose on bank balance sheets. Combined, these measures are meant to assuage public anger over the role banks played in creating the financial crisis and consequentrecession. It won’t work, partly because the sums aren’t big enough but mostly because the whole deal looks like a stunt. – the Guardian

SIR Fred was blasting partridges as Chancellor George Osborne told the Commons he had caved in on bankers’ bonuses. The climbdown came just ten months after the Coalition pledged ­“robust action”against banks bailed out with public money. Earlier in the week it emerged that the Tories were 51 per cent ­funded by financiers last year. – Sunday Mirror