[Margaret Pilkington]

Guinness what you are advocating is a version of privatisation.
During the pandemic, it has been impossible to see a GP….well nigh impossible to get even a telephone appointment…..even if you have complex life shortening health issues.
Yet if I wanted a knee replacement and I could afford to pay then I can guarantee that I could be seen and in a hospital bed in less than seven days having the required surgery.
And though GPs do not want to treat the sick there are some who are still doing aesthetics….the fillers, the Botox etc.

The big problems started when the GP contracts were changed…..also many GP’s work part time in the NHS to give them more time to do more lucrative work.

As for ‘nurses bitching in the media about pay and conditions’…..they are entitled to do this as the staffing levels in many departments are bordering on unsafe and the skill mix is unbalanced…..that might be part of the reason that HCA’s are doing the jobs that were done by nurses.
I know that I have been retired for twenty years, but I have friends still working in the NHS and I know that they work hard for their salaries…and are worth every penny because of their skills and experience.