NHS remedy is nurse training

Yet, while many welcomed Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt’s preventative approach, it is clear that it is a sticking plaster solution which is unlikely to prevent a far greater malaise – a shortage of qualified staff – as the regional director of NHS England warns today of a £4bn funding shortfall in London alone.

Put simply, Mr Hunt’s modest cash boost will be self-defeating unless hospitals have the medical professionals who can provide the world-class care that their patients expect.

This is why at least a third of hospital trusts in England are now recruiting nurses from overseas and who have little, if any experience of the intricacies of the NHS – there simply is not the talent available in this country.

They’re not to blame for this – the fault rests with those politicians who chose to cut the number of training places for aspiring nurses without recognising the simple fact that more staff will be required to treat a rapidly ageing society.

As such, the onus is now on Mr Hunt to devise a robust training strategy – this is now critical and will only be cured by substantiative policies rather than the gimmicks so favoured by those national politicians with short-termist outlooks.

It is the same with the Health Service’s growing dependence on carers, and yesterday’s disturbing revelation that many are having to inject their patients in spite of receiving little or no training from health professionals. This could become even worse as an unforeseen consequence of the Care Bill currently passing through Parliament. It will compel local councils to identify and support cancer carers, according to Macmillan Cancer Support’s chief executive Ciaran Devane.

Given that many local authorities are struggling to find sufficient money to fulfil their existing social care obligations to society, this has all the hallmarks of Whitehall buck-passing rather than Ministers putting in place a national remedy to train sufficient doctors, nurses and carers, and which is becoming a matter of life and death.

Bradford unites

IT is to the eternal credit of Bradfordians that they led by example and did not allow their proud city to be brought to a standstill by yet another acrimonious protest by the far-right English Defence League and a counter rally by anti-fascist campaigners.

They voted with their feet by going about their business as normal, even though these rival rallies necessitated diversions to some bus services and tested the patience of West Yorkshire Police who now face a £1m-plus bill after drafting in officers from across the region.

A proud, but often maligned city which is still working tirelessly to improve its image following the race riots of 2001 while also trying to encourage families from different ethnic communities to integrate, this defiant response will only benefit Bradford in the longer term as its residents looks to turn their backs on those who espouse extremism.

It remains to be seen whether Bradford, or any other Yorkshire town or city, will have to face a similar challenge in the near future – the EDL, an organisation that makes no attempt to pursue its bigoted ideology at the ballot box, is in a state turmoil following the resignation of its leader Tommy Robinson who conceded that the group had been infiltrated by “far-right extremism”.

Yet, while freedom of speech goes to the core of democracy in Britain, perhaps the time has come for a debate about whether taxpayers should foot the bill for the extraordinary policing costs – or whether the organisers of such protests should make a significant financial contribution.

After all, it is a damning indictment of those who descended upon Bradford, spewing hatred, that it cost £1m to keep the peace.

It needs remembering that the damage to the city, both to its fabric and reputation, would have been even greater if West Yorkshire Police had not been so vigilant.

Racing certainty

THE numbers behind York Racecourse’s phenomenal run of success in 2013 are even more impressive than Mass Rally’s impressive win in the final big race of the season on the Knavesmire for local jockey PJ McDonald – a total crowd of 333,000 for 17 days of top class racing; record prize money of £5.8m; an estimated contribution of £58m to the wider York economy and a Macmillan Charity Day which raised £350,000 towards the fight against cancer.

This is not an overnight success story. It follows years of painstaking work by chief executive William Derby, and a dedicated team of up to 2,000 staff on the biggest racedays, to maintain York’s reputation as the track prepares to host day two of the Tour de France next summer.

With major improvements now underway to improve equine and spectator facilities, and a commitment to champion local food producers, York’s future success is one racing certainty that can be backed with absolute confidence.