Your views online
Trump and the NHS
WRITING in yesterday’s Herald, columnist Iain Macwhirter said that while Donald Trump doesn’t want the NHS, he does want us to pay more for our medicines. It comes after the POTUS insisted he wasn’t interested in buying the service, even if it was offered to him “on a silver platter”. Here’s what our readers had to say.
“Oh come on Iain, it’s clear precisely what he meant – a US trade deal will allow Trump to asset strip and extract rent from the service until it becomes unsustainable.”
Paul Rogerson, Twitter
“In essence, much of the NHS – whether clinical services or infrastructure – is delivered by private or third sector, while funded by public sector. In this sense, ‘privatisation’ doesn’t mean service outsourcing, that’s here. It means funded by the individual at point of need.”
Tony Mckelvie, Twitter
“That’s called the economy of scale, and how all large businesses are run. No different from buying in bulk from cash and carry or shopping at Costco. If companies want your business then they have to compete, and not just on price.”
John Wastle, Facebook
“It’s not just the NHS. The worry is that the UK would be in such a weak negotiating position and Boris Johnson would be so desperate to conclude a quick trade deal that he would have to make all sorts of concessions and yield to all sorts of influences. It will be America first.”
Eric Clive, heraldscotland.com
“We all know that anything Trump says cannot be believed. He will say one thing today and the opposite tomorrow. He is totally unreliable and the UK should have nothing to do with him.
“The UK should be staying in the EU. There is strength in numbers, especially when someone you thought was a friend (Trump) turns out to be an enemy.”
J Williamson, heraldscotland.com
“Don’t let Trump interfere with anything Scotland does. He’s poison.”
John Jackson, heraldscotland.com
“I couldn’t care where my drugs come from but I would expect the people who procure drugs for the NHS to look for the best deal, so for that reason, I take all this scaremongering with a pinch of salt.
“Only the other day it was proposed that a specialist American surgeon should be brought to this country to treat women with mesh implant problems and if he’s the best person to do the job then I’m all for it, as it is the patients who matter most and many of them have a terrible life.”
William Logan, heraldscotland.com
SNP school reforms
MIDDLE-CLASS pupils are paying the price for sweeping school reforms, a leading educationalist has warned, as Scotland’s performance in maths and science hit a record low in international rankings. Our readers shared their views.
“The divisive SNP Government have destroyed our education system with their reforms since they came into power.
“Their answer now is to throw attainment money at areas where children are leaving primary schools unable to spell or count correctly. Scottish education used to be one of the best in the world but now because school education standards have fallen so low our universities concentrate more on bringing in foreign students as they think Scottish students are not good enough.”
John Bones, Facebook
“The SNP were elected to tackle the attainment gap. That is what they are doing. It is unfortunate that we are not given enough of our own money to allow everyone to reach their potential.”
John Rose, heraldscotland.com
“John Swinney said the results were ‘very encouraging’ so that’s good enough for me.”
Derek Miller, heraldscotland.com
“The sooner the bungling SNP are voted out, the better off Scotland will be.”
Ian Anderson, heraldscotland.com