NHS

The Greens have a small but committed trade union group and a good deal of the speakers identify themselves as trade unionists.

The also passed an emergency motion yesterday as follows;

"This conference supports the workers at NHS logistics in their strike action against being privatised and calls for an immediate halt to all privatisation of the NHS. Conference calls upon GPEx to publicise our support."

Which is great. It's interesting the level of openness to the trade unions that exists in the party. Today one of the main speakers was Brian Synott from the European Federation of Public Services Unions (which includes lots of the main unions in the UK) who spoke interestingly and well on what's happening at a European level.

With this level of support the Green trade union group really needs to raise their game to turn "support" into real active involvement. Although it's unfair, many people certainly would not associate the Greens with Trade Unions and the only way to turn that around is to get to the front of the movement. At least it's good to see here in the hall, I wondered if there would be any opposition to trade unionism and it appears there is consensus. Cool.

Another, more problematic motion was passed earlier today which, whilst having it's heart in the right places needs much more thought as to the implications.

"The Green Party believes it is wrong in principle that private health care companies and agencies should be able to employ or use staff who have been expensively trained by the NHS without contributing something to the cost of that training. Therefore companies, including pharmaceutical companies, employing or using NHS trained healthcare professionals outside the NHS will have to pay an additional training tax. This will take the form of a levy for each person hour during which they employ or use NHS trained staff outside the NHS. The proceeds from this levy will go directly into the NHS Tax which the Green Party is going to create."

Leaving aside the fact that this may make laid off NHS staff near unemployable by any employer with an eye to cost the whole emphasis is wrong. It's focus is on the individual health worker not the structures of the health system. A cleaner isn't expensively trained but they should be an NHS member of staff not in the hands of a private company.

We should abolish the agencies and privateers and take the whole of the health care system into public ownership not tinker about making NHS trained workers more expensive to employ than their private counterparts.