Monthly Archives: March 2013
Husband who cares for his wife with MS faces misery because they have a spare bedroom
‘I’d rather go to jail than pay bedroom tax’ – husband carer’s desperation over controversial welfare cut
PETER PAPWORTH, who looks after his disabled wife, says he’d rather be behind bars than pay the Con-Dem’s bedroom tax.
A HUSBAND who cares for his disabled wife is among the first people to be hit by the Con-Dem Government’s controversial bedroom tax.
Peter Papworth received a demand from Highland Council this week but vows he will go to jail rather than pay.
The 38-year-old lives with wife Amanda, who has multiple sclerosis, in a two-bedroom house in Inverness.
But Highland Council say the couple must fork out £9.96 a week from next month as they have a spare room.
He is now demanding a meeting with local Lib Dem MP Danny Alexander – a leading member of the Coalition Government behind the tax.
Peter said: “My stomach is knotted with anger. To some people it might only be £40 a month but we simply cannot afford it. This will have a devastating effect on us.”
A chance to make a real difference for patients and carers!
Putting patients first
A major change to the way GPs in England commission local health services will take place in April – and it offers board members of clinical groups the chance to make a real difference for their communities
While debate was raging at Westminster about the government’s NHS reforms, groups of GPs across England were quietly going about the job of setting up the boards tasked with steering through major changes to the service. Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), which take over from primary care trusts in April, are designed to put GPs in the driving seat when it comes to commissioning services in their area.
The new boards have a big job ahead. Not only are there significant pressures on budgets, but the fallout from the Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust inquiry means, more than ever, the spotlight is on standards of care.
Dr Charles Alessi, chair of NHS Clinical Commissioners, the body set up to represent the new boards, says there are real opportunities for board members to make a difference. “It is a very difficult time for the NHS and perhaps the balance between a robust management style and the clinical dimension needs to be rebalanced,” he says, “with the duty of care to the population taking on a far more important role than it seemed to in the past. For all of us, it’s a new world – it’s very difficult, but very exciting.”
