Broken Britain, How would YOU fix it?

[RickyR]

It's obvious that Britain is broken.

a) What can we do to fix it?
b) How would that fix it?

[RickyR]

I'll start

1)
a) Reform the welfare stateb
b) Would prevent anyone claiming what they are not entitled to, encouraging employment and respect

2)
a) Remove the UK for the EU
b) Reduce costs and obligations, and allow the UK to trade freely without limitation

[imagine]

id say abandon the sinking ship,, its too late

[branno]

i personally would remove or exterminate every tory mp and every tory voting imbecile... :icon_lol::icon_lol::xxgrinning--00xx3:..

[imagine]

1/ out of europe,
2/send back all those that shouldnt be here . including european ie polish, illegal imigants, and any other nationality that will not intergrate, wether born here to imigant parents or not, out any muslim extremist,
3/ take back what used to be public secter, what is now private, its better to be none profit making if it means more employed rather than the private slimlining in order to make profit, make jobs instead,
4/disasemble capitalism, its only good for the few, and i belive thats where our biggest problem is,

[RickyR]

i personally would remove or exterminate every tory mp and every tory voting imbecile... :icon_lol::icon_lol::xxgrinning--00xx3:..

And the Labour MP's and the Lib Dems.

Start with one of the smaller more focused parties.

[Ako Si Jamie]

Anyone with more than 2 kids shouldn't get help off the state to support them. Stop all this multi-breeding.

Free up resources. Death penalty for scum like paedo's, rapists, murderers etc.

Persistent criminals and trouble makers sent to Greenland or South Pole to start a new life to fend for themselves. Not bothered which. Jeremy Kyle can go to!

Harsher punishment for MP's and those in higher positions should they cross the line.

That's it for now.

[Ako Si Jamie]

1/ out of europe,
2/send back all those that shouldnt be here . including european ie polish, illegal imigants, and any other nationality that will not intergrate, wether born here to imigant parents or not, out any muslim extremist,
3/ take back what used to be public secter, what is now private, its better to be none profit making if it means more employed rather than the private slimlining in order to make profit, make jobs instead,
4/disasemble capitalism, its only good for the few, and i belive thats where our biggest problem is,I agree with all those although no.4 to an extent.

[lastlid]

I have visited many countries over a 30 year time span and its always been my opinion that many countries are either catching up with or have caught up with the UK or left us behind. Nothing much we can do about that. Times are getting tougher year on year and what we see are the symptoms of that. No magic solutions for that.....just like our national football team.....

[joebloggs]

broken Brittan, when people stop risking their lives to sneak under lorries, that's when i know this country is broken :D

i was watching a news report, why so many rich Russians come and live in the UK, a rich Russian guy who just bought the Rolex store in London said, every time he comes to the Uk and the plane is landing, he feels safe and happy here.

[imagine]

i was watching a news report, why so many rich Russians come and live in the UK, a rich Russian guy who just bought the Rolex store in London said, every time he comes to the Uk and the plane is landing, he feels safe and happy here.

well thats one plus for britain :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[Pete/London]

Well I have always been against being part of the EU but had a serious change of mind recently and would like to embrace it fully, and make it totally integrated.

1: Europe wide pension administered by the Germans.
2: Europe wide health service administered by the French or Germans ( or anyone except us)
3: Europe wide banking run by Luxemburg or invite Switzerland to join.
4: Europe wide education run by Sweden
Rest of the Welfare system, leave it to the Germans.

If it happens it may stop this country being such a magnet for the 3rd world.:)

[Jamesey]

Broken Britain? I wish you lot would cheer up! If it's that bad here, why not do what one of the posters advises, and leave?

But where would you go? Which country has it so much better than us? I can't think of many.

There are definitely problems in this country, but no government will ever resolve them to the satisfaction of everyone.

I think dismantling capitalism is a bit of an over-reaction though! :yikes:

[Dedworth]

Make prisons a place of fear for the criminals - harsh regime, subsistence diet, no playstations etc. Sentences to be served in full no parole or early release. Realistic mandatory minimum sentences eg 3 years for burglary or mugging, repeat offenders get it doubled up.

All illegal immigrants deported. Prison mandatory for benefit cheats. Death sentence for terrorists, serial and child killers.

Renationalise the railways, controls on price fixing, proiteering utilities and supermarkets.

That's my starter for 10 :D

[les_taxi]

I can't wait to join in but at work so I will post my manifesto tmrw :D

[imagine]

Well I have always been against being part of the EU but had a serious change of mind recently and would like to embrace it fully, and make it totally integrated.

1: Europe wide pension administered by the Germans.
2: Europe wide health service administered by the French or Germans ( or anyone except us)
3: Europe wide banking run by Luxemburg or invite Switzerland to join.
4: Europe wide education run by Sweden
Rest of the Welfare system, leave it to the Germans.

If it happens it may stop this country being such a magnet for the 3rd world.:)

the manifest you have just given yes , but the way as it is now no,

iv always thought we would have been better off had the germans won the war,
with the exceptian of the exterminations,
germany seems to prosper ,

but as we stand in europe now with different laws some of ours and some of theirs, and some are conflicting which is not good

[grahamw48]

Go back to 1970.

Great music, and I'd be 18 again. :D

[subseastu]

i personally would remove or exterminate every tory mp and every tory voting imbecile... :icon_lol::icon_lol::xxgrinning--00xx3:..

Because labour did such a bang up job whilst they where in power.......................oh hang on:crazy:

[imagine]

And the Labour MP's and the Lib Dems.

Start with one of the smaller more focused parties.

put em all against the wall and shoot em,, you cant tell any difference between the partys today,there all cheating lying thugs

[subseastu]

Reform the whole benefit system so it doesn't encourage dossers to sit at home banging out more kids to gain more benefits. Basically make so they receive less than if they actually went out and got a job. Same goes for the yoff of today, get them out working.

Take the transport system out of private hands and make it transport for the people again, not a over priced embarrassment that is all about profit margins.

Adjust the taxation system. If you earn more you pay more, simple. Obviously leave the SED for merchant seaman well alone!

Reduce the number of civil servants, especially those in middle management areas.

Same goes for the nhs, reduce the number of managers and increase the number of actual caregivers

Thinking about the same goes for the emergency services, armed forces (these should be budgeted correctly rather than cutting troops and equipment levels etc), and teaching, local councils.

Get rid of 80% of this PC nonsense that govt and councils seem intent on wasting vast sums of money on; we should follow Australia’s lead on this.

Have an effective immigration system. Immigration is a good thing, we are after all an island and have relied on immigration for thousand of years we just have to control it. Again Oz seems to have a handle on it.

Make prison a deterrent not a holiday home.

Deport those that need deporting i.e. not a british national, regardless of what may happen to them back in their own country, if you broke the law here you are effectively outside of the law and therefore not our responsibility.

As for government this a tricky one, they are all liars and cheats so it a matter of getting the best of a bad bunch. Make all there salary etc public knowledge, they should not be allowed to make money from other ventures whilst “representing” their respective areas, save that for when you finish your political career.

Make sure bankers are more accountable for their actions. Very important as their actions as well as those knobs labour helped the uk fall into one of the biggest debts of any of the developed countries.

Oh yes, for f***s sake make sure that there is a supply of grit for the roads every winter!!!!

Thats all I can think of for now, I was woken up early this morning by what sounds like the entire frog population of the philippins having sex 4 feet from my window on my rice farm!!!

As mentioned before in this thread by Jamesey if it was really bad alot more would be packing up and leaving. Every country has it bad at the moment its some more than others. Ours looks bad due to previous policies of past govts and the whole banking system thing. nothing can ever be fixed 100% its impossible.

The country that probably has got it about right is Singapore but then again until you actually live somewhere and become apart of its society you don't really know what problems a country suffers from.

[les_taxi]

Subseastu Thanks you have covered most of my stuff so I don't have to type one out now.
I would add scrap human rights bill.
Closer bonds with Germany and U.S.A stuff the lazy latin countries and ungrateful frogs.
All fit able bodied young men can be put to work repairing and building new roads if they wish to receive any benefits.
Bring back more apprenticeships and less of this 'uni' crap and reduce many of the pointless exams kids have to take but concentrate on the 3 rs.
When mps have to vote on big decisions they have to vote accordingly to the wishes of their constituents whose views were gathered at their local surgeries not off their own 'bat'

[subseastu]

Pleasure.

Personally I wouldn't scrape the human rights bill the problem is its been abused in the past, so like most other things it needs reform to allow it to be used for what it was intended for, not for rapist, immigrants to hide in prison claiming they'll get a bit of kicking if they get sent home.

More apprenticeships certainly but you can't get rid of the uni "crap". Its about achieving a balance throughout the future workforce. I would scrape degrees in next to useless subjects though, I don't know if they still do it but one uni did a degree in Madonna!!! Uni's should be more accessable for all, unfortunately they seem to becoming a bit elitist again. Agree about reducing exams through school specifically those in junior school, whats the point in testing a 5 years old? Bring back sets in school subjects, alot of school kids are now lumped together regardless of ability, so the class progresses at the pace of the slowest kid. Complete nonsense!! Kids should be grouped according to ability so they can achiev the most they can.

Agree on the MP's thing, they should represent the people not their own agenda.

Not sure about closer bonds with the USA, we do needs ties with them but it maybe time to look to the east, China etc.

[grahamw48]

Besides, the women and food in the East are much better. :D

[stevewool]

i can honestly say i dont know, so i shall just read what others say, may say something if i think thtas good or crap too:icon_lol::icon_lol:

[Ako Si Jamie]

The biggest problem with this country is it's arrogant and lives in the past. We won the war, we won the World Cup. Half a century or so on and we're still banging on about it. Now the Olympic Games are coming and nothing else seems to matter. Just something else to boast about even though the you could count the Great Britain medal tally on the fingers of a mangled hand at the end of it.

For this country to improve it needs to look at itself in the mirror - to sort out its own problems and stop trying to rule the world and pretending to be better than the rest of the planet. Get rid of these uneducated morons in power and bring in someone who's gone to the university of life.

[les_taxi]

We dominated more of the world than any other nation and I'm proud of that I know that sounds bad but i can't help it:icon_lol:
Olympic games I and many of my friends don't give a toss about them.

[Englishman2010]

I'll vote for Subseastu for PM:xxgrinning--00xx3:

[imagine]

oh dear were a fallen broken empire:NoNo:

[somebody]

Not try quick fixes, we need long term change and improvements.

Warn the UK population it will take time to sort things

From my own experience and view of the world

Review whats working and whats not plenty of local and national government services and departments are working and in some cases working well others are not.

Get in only business managers or business/process improvement consultants/managers who have proven experience. Met plenty who had no experience in that industry or similar just a degree or????

Review all IT contracts and processes Billions are being wasted the amount of systems with millions spent on top of what was spent on them to try and make them work is incredible..
Many of these companies and their employees are not British owned/based..

Written this before to sell to government organsations is a sales persons dream they rarely seem to haggle, will normally over order and over spec plus can be talked in to crazy service contracts.

From the UK educated employees we have many have such poor I.T related skills experience if you consider just there state education all the way up to University. Most only have the skills, knowledge and experience required if they have worked there way though the industry, self taught at home or privately educated them self either at a college course or literally in their own home.

IT skills at academies my company has taken under its wing was basically learning a few words or jargon and learning about MS O/S of the day and the M/S office they have available useful but far more skills and knowledge required.

We need people with basic networking skills, Programing, analytical skills, Project management, among many other skills nearly all of our candidates don't come though the UK Education system :NoNo:

Most of the British graduates seem to only be skilled in writing reports which is handy but:rolleyes:

Our industry is not a niche industry but one that should be generating lots of PAYE tax and NAtional Insurance when contract workers from abroad are used many will claim back their Income tax and NI when the job is up and they leave the UK..

Think how many well paying jobs say in the city of London Finance sector HAVE to employ workers from abroad to find the skilled workforce they need. As we know on here look how much of our salaries after day to day costs flow out of the UK as remittance or for us to spend ourselves when in the "other country"..

I have written about on here how we have taken young pupils and put them on to apprenticeship courses and are all doing well:xxgrinning--00xx3:

Many are from sink estates in the centre of London you know the ones where people were rioting and complaining of lack of opportunities. I know of some who have done well stayed out of trouble completed college and university courses in fields where they are up against it to find work.

Sadly the career advice in the UK is poor, all about making the pupil feel good about themselves and trying to get them into uni/college if possible to look good in stats.

Often the most successful training/education/career progression is joining an industry and getting a grounding and then experience in a field..

We are in a recession and yet our company has tens of job vacancies in the UK. Most will after being advertised here in the UK soon be advertised in the EU and then worldwide.

I can list names of companies and their departments which are suffering from the lack of skilled workers..

We have a major issue where we need a person who is knowledgeable in the field of Microsoft products office/ O/S and back end nothing indepth with MS certification already or possibly prepared to study for at the companies expense (you need a company or the individual to have paid for the courses and involve peoples spare time to learn the knowledge and skills to pass) We need the candidate to be in place asap and prepared to study, but very good pay benefits and a nice car. Only one British Educated individual went for the job the rest all educated abroad.

This country has a massive issue with people taking Engineering and technical qualifications and then taking jobs in the field. Taking or being interested in Technical subject is thought of as a nerd yet the country needs thousands of technically minded people prepared to learn on the job often..

In German, Japan and even in America being a qualified Engineer or person working in a Technical sector is in a job which others respect and look up to.

Many of the media studies and history post graduates if they taken different paths could possibly filling the vacancies we have and I see at other companies I work with:NoNo:


Both our local and national governments are suffering due to lack of Skills and knowledge in various fields, so are the companies in the UK. Our population is suffering from a lack of jobs especially the young.

Give people jobs, have income from taxes, have better processes and more efficient local and government departments.

Its to late now this should have all been done in the eighties and nineties where most of my peers plus those before and after have found the Education system to be at least part useless

[grahamw48]

Very VERY good post. :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[branno]

The biggest problem with this country is it's arrogant and lives in the past. We won the war, we won the World Cup. Half a century or so on and we're still banging on about it. Now the Olympic Games are coming and nothing else seems to matter. Just something else to boast about even though the you could count the Great Britain medal tally on the fingers of a mangled hand at the end of it.

For this country to improve it needs to look at itself in the mirror - to sort out its own problems and stop trying to rule the world and pretending to be better than the rest of the planet. Get rid of these uneducated morons in power and bring in someone who's gone to the university of life.

michael foot would of sorted the lot out... god rest his soul..

[Dedworth]

michael foot would of sorted the lot out... god rest his soul..

He'll always be remembered for his dress sense

http://news.bbc.co.uk/media/images/47407000/jpg/_47407710_008880849-1.jpg

[branno]

He'll always be remembered for his dress sense

http://news.bbc.co.uk/media/images/47407000/jpg/_47407710_008880849-1.jpg

:xxgrinning--00xx3: and looking at that horrible person on SIR michaelsls left... gives me nightmares...:icon_lol: nice one ded :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[les_taxi]

I'm proud of the great Lady on the left:xxgrinning--00xx3:

[branno]

I'm proud of the great Lady on the left:xxgrinning--00xx3:

we all have our faults les ... :icon_lol::icon_lol:

[les_taxi]

Yes I once went to watch Leeds utd in my early football fan days.
Maggie thatcher the greatest leader of my time:xxgrinning--00xx3:

[Dedworth]

Yes I once went to watch Leeds utd in my early football fan days.
Maggie thatcher the greatest leader of my time:xxgrinning--00xx3:

Funny you should mention Leeds United Les - bit of a cup tie bogey team methinks :icon_lol:

[les_taxi]

Well we are playing the kids of the kids tmrw plus Micheal Owen so should be fun:D

[branno]

Yes I once went to watch Leeds utd in my early football fan days.
Maggie thatcher the greatest leader of my time:xxgrinning--00xx3:

and i thought dennis was the only one who loved her...:icon_lol::icon_lol:

[les_taxi]

Gave this country backbone and respect and also was worried about too many immigrants coming here which history has shown to be founded.

[imagine]

i remember all too well how prosperouse uk was before the iron lady , i watched uk tumble into decline from the start of her raign, yes she was a strong leader but she wasnt for the working man,

now thats the history i saw from leaving school, being able to have any job, you could walk from one employment straight into another, money was plentyful, there is no one can presuade me any differently, she began the destruction in my eyes

[Dedworth]

i remember all too well how prosperouse uk was before the iron lady , i watched uk tumble into decline from the start of her raign, yes she was a strong leader but she wasnt for the working man,

now thats the history i saw from leaving school, being able to have any job, you could walk from one employment straight into another, money was plentyful, there is no one can presuade me any differently, she began the destruction in my eyes




I think your memory is shall we say a bit "selective" Imagine :)

Taken from "Fleet Street Invest"

It’s late autumn, 1976. Britain is facing yet another sterling crisis. In less than two years the pound has fallen from $2.40 to $1.60. Investors have no faith in the British economy, or the government that runs it. The Budget is a mess — vital public spending will have to be cut.

Investors punish Britain by ditching its currency.

The plummeting pound pushes the economy to breaking point. Prime Minister Callaghan is told that unless a solution is found, Britain can no longer afford to be a nuclear power.

In desperation, the government finally acts. In December, Labour Chancellor Denis Healey takes a drastic step. He borrows £2.3 billion — the maximum allowed — from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

That was the situation just before the electorate binned Callaghan and elected Maggie Thatcher

[les_taxi]

Thank god we have different eyes:)

[imagine]

im 57 yrs old i left school at 16, there was approx 2000, jobs available when i was interviewd for employment, apprentiships, building, pannel beaters, engineers, labourers, painters,plumbers, electricians,aprentiships, the list goes on, a levels, o levels, no qualifications were necassery,
by the time i was in my 20s there was big changes, the good times had gone , i dont care what the figures are, but i know what i saw

[Englishman2010]

I think your memory is shall we say a bit "selective" Imagine :)

Taken from "Fleet Street Invest"

It’s late autumn, 1976. Britain is facing yet another sterling crisis. In less than two years the pound has fallen from $2.40 to $1.60. Investors have no faith in the British economy, or the government that runs it. The Budget is a mess — vital public spending will have to be cut.

Investors punish Britain by ditching its currency.

The plummeting pound pushes the economy to breaking point. Prime Minister Callaghan is told that unless a solution is found, Britain can no longer afford to be a nuclear power.

In desperation, the government finally acts. In December, Labour Chancellor Denis Healey takes a drastic step. He borrows £2.3 billion — the maximum allowed — from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

That was the situation just before the electorate binned Callaghan and elected Maggie Thatcher


That's how I remember it too Ded, and it's funny how history has a habit of repeating itself. 30 years on and Labour completely cocked up the economy again putting us up to our eyeballs in debt acting like the Uk economy was a giant credit card

[branno]

we all have ideas how to run a country... just a bloody shame no one can get it right... but the chinese are doing a bloody good job at it... look at britain now... just a mass of foreign poeple here.. esp the polish... and other countries.. i go to the local tescos and they are all polish employees... i go to a bar they cant speak english....the local schools are now so polish influenced... job centres now have on line translators... i wouldnt be suprised if the next priminster in say the next 25 yrs is polish... bitain is going down the pan...

[imagine]

going down the pan , i think its already there

[les_taxi]

I know a few poles who are going home they say it's crap here now:laugher:

[imagine]

i dont think there is any difference between the parties today, perhaps thats because we are different peoples today,

in my early working days i worked with 2 older guys both hardend old school conservatives, their beleifes, of the working man,,,, the working man does not need education, cars, tv, or holidays, they should not be able to afford it, now they truly believed that

[branno]

going down the pan , i think its already there

not quite yet... but things will get worse.... actually we cant cope with it... we need to stop it right now... i cant wait to see a refugee or asylum seeker marry a politicians daughter... :icon_lol:

[les_taxi]

I am a fan of the past I do admit to,but as I was driving around (before idiot woman crashed my car) I noticed as I have done many times before what a bunch of hapless morons we are becoming
Everywhere I drive people are glued to their phones,the number of times they cross a busy road and you have to break to avoid hitting them.
Worst thing is they don't even acknowledge you were even there-bloody brain dead:cwm23:
If you give them a toot to remind them they are in danger of being knocked down you just get a two fingered salute:NoNo:
What I'm saying is all the discipline,courtesy and good manners along with common sense and decency has declined so much we are left in a right mess
This seem to begin with the generation after mine,what has happened to this once great nation and it's people!

[branno]

I am a fan of the past I do admit to,but as I was driving around (before idiot woman crashed my car) I noticed as I have done many times before what a bunch of hapless morons we are becoming
Everywhere I drive people are glued to their phones,the number of times they cross a busy road and you have to break to avoid hitting them.
Worst thing is they don't even acknowledge you were even there-bloody brain dead:cwm23:
If you give them a toot to remind them they are in danger of being knocked down you just get a two fingered salute:NoNo:
What I'm saying is all the discipline,courtesy and good manners along with common sense and decency has declined so much we are left in a right mess
This seem to begin with the generation after mine,what has happened to this once great nation and it's people!

i think we need a good leader les...time for change...:xxgrinning--00xx3:

[imagine]

I am a fan of the past I do admit to,but as I was driving around (before idiot woman crashed my car) I noticed as I have done many times before what a bunch of hapless morons we are becoming
Everywhere I drive people are glued to their phones,the number of times they cross a busy road and you have to break to avoid hitting them.
Worst thing is they don't even acknowledge you were even there-bloody brain dead:cwm23:
If you give them a toot to remind them they are in danger of being knocked down you just get a two fingered salute:NoNo:
What I'm saying is all the discipline,courtesy and good manners along with common sense and decency has declined so much we are left in a right mess
This seem to begin with the generation after mine,what has happened to this once great nation and it's people!

i dont know, what did happen? why? is it our generations fault they have become like this? is it the food they eat these days? is because they didnt have breast milk, chemicals on crops?hormones in the beef they eat? or is it evolution in reverse

[les_taxi]

I don't think it's my generation,my kids were disciplined they know respect and although not perfect they know right from wrong and I never heard them swear in front of me.
Same goes for my mates of same age-it came after us.

[les_taxi]

i think we need a good leader les...time for change...:xxgrinning--00xx3:

Your right branno let's clone Maggie:D

[imagine]

Your right branno let's clone Maggie:D

:yikes::yikes::yikes::omg::omg::omg:

[grahamw48]

70s ?

All I remember is going out nightclubbing, chasing women, doing rude things with them, listening to great music, drinking beer and driving fast cars.

Did I miss something ? :D

[Dedworth]

Your right branno let's clone Maggie:D

How about Gene Hunt Les ?

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01603/philip_glenister_1603196c.jpg

"It doesn't take a degree in applied b0llocks to know what's going on."

[les_taxi]

How about Gene Hunt Les ?

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01603/philip_glenister_1603196c.jpg

"It doesn't take a degree in applied b0llocks to know what's going on."
Yes let's clean this scum up:D

[Dedworth]

Yes let's clean this scum up:D

Send him down to Dale Farm for starters :D

[grahamw48]

Remember Dale Farm Yoghurt back in the 70s ?...you know, that funny new thick milky stuff in a tub, with strawberries in it. :)

[les_taxi]

How about 'Cresta' it's frothy man:)

[grahamw48]

Oh yes ! :)

And....how about Chicken and chips in a basket, for those 'sophisticated' nights out ? :icon_lol:

.
.
Batley Variety Club 1975, with my lodger, Showaddywaddy concert: :D
.
http://img705.imageshack.us/img705/8892/batleyvarietyclub.jpg

[subseastu]

I'll vote for Subseastu for PM:xxgrinning--00xx3:

Why thank you, you'll get a quality position on my cabinet

[andy222]

1. Engineering is a big field.
The fact is yes there are a lot of engineers of my age out there. The problem is the company will not pay a decent wage. Im a qualified engineer. Why should I work for £7 an hour?. Thats why they bring imigrants into the country. Cheap labour. And thats why the country is in a mess. I know my profile says I work for the NHS and its true because I changed my career when the engineering trade was abandoned by previous governments. The fact is the previous governments sold this country down the river and now they are complaining because there are lack of skills. GOVERNMENTS PUTS PRICES UP =THE WORKING MAN HAS TO EARN MORE TO LIVE.

[joebloggs]

this is what they should do :D

http://www.johnredwoodsdiary.com/2011/03/31/if-you-want-to-tax-the-rich-more-cut-the-rates/
:laugher:

[Doc Alan]

It's obvious that Britain is broken.
a) What can we do to fix it?
b) How would that fix it?
Our life expectancy at birth - one measure of health - is about a decade longer than in the Philippines, and Britain spends over 9% of its GDP on health, compared to less than 3% in the Philippines. We're lucky to have the NHS.
However, all is not well with health in the UK.
Too many of us still smoke ( a quarter in Scotland and Northern Ireland ; a fifth in England and Wales ). It costs more to treat the consequences of smoking than the tax raised from this habit.
More than a quarter of us are obese, we don't eat enough fruit and vegetables, and we don't take enough exercise.
Britain is the European leader for alcohol-related disease, which costs the NHS and the economy far more than the tax raised. A third of us exceed recommended safe levels of alcohol intake.
Possibly 1/3 adults have high blood pressure and up to half are not being treated.
Survival from common cancers in Britain is worse than several similar countries.
EU rules contribute to problems of quality / communication with doctors and nurses from Europe practising here, and the Working Time Directive limits the hours doctors in training can work.
Increased illegal drug usage has filled our jails, cost taxpayers ( not offset by tax raised ), spread avoidable diseases and fuelled organised crime.
The PFI ( Private Finance Initiative ) system for building new hospitals has proved very poor value for money, yet has escaped much public attention.

As for a) and b) :-
Easier said than done, but here goes ...
Leave the EU.
Train more doctors in the UK. At present more than a third qualified outside the UK, and there is an excess of British applicants for every medical school place. Train more nurses in the UK.
Improve doctors' and nurses' communication with patients. This is not only for treatment, but also prevention of illness. It's far easier and cost - effective to screen for diseases ( cancers, diabetes, high blood pressure ) than to treat. It's also very hard to lose weight, and far better never to become overweight in the first place. Prevention is better than cure.
" Post code lottery " for prescriptions and treatment should not exist - there should not be such a range of health / ill health depending on where you live.
We will never make smoking and alcohol consumption illegal, just as we will not decriminalise drugs - hypocritical as that may be. But there's room for more support and treatment for all three habits.
Health care reforms - allowing more treatment by the private and voluntary sector, and devolving decision making to GPs ( and hospital doctors ) - probably won't contain the costs of health care, but might improve our health.

Britain's health - while not broken - could certainly be improved. Have a look at www.lookafterournhs.org.uk , contact your MP ( www.parliament.uk ), find out if your local surgery has a patient participation group ( www.growingppgs.com ), consider donating blood, and arrange to leave organs after death for transplantation ( http://www.uktransplant.org.uk/ukt/how_to_become_a_donor/how_to_become_a_donor.jsp ).

[andy222]

I agree with all what you have said doc but the health service will be privatised eventually.

[Englishman2010]

Why thank you, you'll get a quality position on my cabinet

Plonked next to your Burton and District darts or football trophy and a bottle of Pedigree:icon_lol:

[grahamw48]

Thanks Doc.

I can find nothing to disagree with there. :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[imagine]

viniger and brown paper:Cuckoo:

[grahamw48]

Now when I wer a lad... :D

.

http://www.newsplayer.com/im-backing-britain-campaign-1968-video

.
:Britain:

[imagine]

bi gum them wert days

[grahamw48]

Aye, at least we had proper posh people on't telly.

None of these common oyks they have now. :NoNo:

[imagine]

aye i and they could talk proper, like what i do

[grahamw48]

Ayup sithee...thys not wrong there lad. :xxgrinning--00xx3:

[Doc Alan]

Thanks Doc.

I can find nothing to disagree with there. :xxgrinning--00xx3:
#67 was an honest response to Ricky's thread which took a long time to prepare - good to know that two members - yourself and Andy - appreciate it :xxgrinning--00xx3:.

[grahamw48]

I'm sure we all appreciate your opinions and advice Doc, and the useful information in your posts. :xxgrinning--00xx3: