What do we hate more – secrets or lies? It seems to me that The Department of Health are hiding away the Risk Register for the Health and Social Care Bill whilst feeding us a load of lies about how safe and equitable this Bill is going to be. Even the stuff we’re allowed to see (impact assessments) are hidden away on the government website.
The government argues that releasing the Risk Register would carry “significant implications” for all departments of government. And that the risks laid out in the register are the “worse-case scenario” for all government departments. Their arguments based on the fact that these speculations may be wrongly interpreted in the public eye and may give the wrong impression. Huh?
Does that not paint the whole picture? For something as sensitive as this, SURELY MPs and the members of the House of Lords should have access to ALL the risks before they debate it in Parliament?
Many of us wrote to our MPs last year asking them to put pressure on Andrew Lansley to release the Risk Register. The Department of Health issued a standard response deflecting attention at least until the New Year. The exact words being:
“It is expected that the Appeals Tribunal will consider this case in the new year.” *
Well. We are not going to let them forget their promise to reconsider releasing the Risk Register in 2012. Now is the time for us to kindly remind our MPs of the response the letter included, and ask them to get back in touch with Andrew Lansley. The more pressure we put on, the more likely it is that the Risk Register will be released. This will allow knowledgeable and fair debate in the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
What can you do next?
- Join the Twitter Campaign to raise awareness of the Risk Register
- Tweet: @minister_health Lansley refuses to release #riskregister despite info comissioner’s order! RT to #SaveTheNHS
- Follow: https://bigsocietynhs.wordpress.com/
- Follow @medsinuk and @bigsocietyNHS on Twitter
- Sign the ‘Drop the Bill’ petition.
- Stay tuned for some National Action coming up VERY SOON