People power
CAMPAIGN No.
WE have a proud history as a campaigning newspaper.
We fought the Bedroom Tax, forcing exemptions for the disabled, foster parents and forces families.
Our battle for Abi Longfellow, denied lifesaving drugs, means no one will have to go through what she did. We uncovered the scandal at North Middlesex Hospital, where patients were told to go home unless they were dying.
Now the Government has announced two big changes.
NHS litigation cases will be settled earlier and the scandal of veterans’ mental health treatment is finally being addressed.
These changes come about because we know you care about injustice. You like people to be treated fairly, with respect, and dignity. So we’ll keep fighting. THE Sunday People won two sensational victories this week with Government U-turns on the NHS and the treatment of war veterans.
Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt was shamed into a climbdown over NHS compo payouts after our exclusive stories.
We revealed the amount of public cash set aside for medical negligence compensation hit £56billion – almost half the annual NHS budget. But many cases could have been settled sooner instead of being dragged through expensive legal proceedings.
And this week Mr Hunt told MPs: “The NHS Litigation Authority will radically change its focus from simply defending claims to the early settlement of cases, learning from what goes wrong and the prevention of errors.
“As part of those changes, it will change its name to NHS Resolution.”
Our second victory came with the announcement of a £3million package to improve mental health for military veterans. It follows the Sunday People’s S. O. S campaign – Save Our Soldiers – to help tackle the growing problem of posttraumatic stress disorder in ex-servicemen and women. Military personnel have been promised the cash to tackle a range of conditions. Dedicated NHS teams will be set up to ease the transition to civilian life. The service will be offered in four parts of the country, and also over the internet. Officials said 17,500 ex-servicemen and women will benefit over the next three years.