The NHS remains at the top of the political agenda. 
Because of this I am very grateful that the support for me through Independent Health Concern Councillors in last week's elections remains so strong.

A debate in the House of Commons on Tuesday on the management of the NHS by the Department of Health was revealing. 
Ministers and New Labour MPs will never admit that there is anything wrong with the NHS at all. 
Tory and Liberal Democrat MPs, in my opinion, give a more realistic view of what is really happening but because of the political divide their comments are always rubbished by the Government. A listener from another country would think there are two different health services here.

I still have the hope that sitting between the major parties the comments I make in debates could carry more weight. 

• It is inconceivable that an organisation can face repeated and continual reforms without some hindrance to its work of caring for patients. 
• It is inexplicable that a National Health Service labelled as patient-led by the Government can be continually assailed by top down reforms and yet this is just what is happening. 
  For the Government to put extra money into the NHS and have difficulty in showing greater productivity, points to poor management. 
• The abolition of local Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) and Patient and Public Involvement Forums (PPIFs) when they have only been functioning for about two years and are now effective, seems to me to be an example of stupidity.

Sadly, Government Ministers will never admit openly that I could be right but I hope that my comments are taken seriously behind the scenes.

The future of our own PCT PPIF (!) that has been so active hangs in the balance. 
With other MPs I am pressing for replacement patient and citizen representative organisations that have the same or greater powers, whatever they are called. 

It seems to me that if the Government wants, as it claims a patient-led NHS, than it has to make resources available to support a body that would continue to represent these views.

My wife and I enjoyed taking part in the judging of the Carnival Queen for Stourport Carnival. 
All the contestants were delightful and would have made excellent ambassadors for the town and so the choice was difficult. As we are approaching the carnival season and as the cost of insurance is making it harder and harder to have the traditional magnificent floats on huge lorries, 

I believe we should be asking local groups to plan walking displays and tableaux which could be just as colourful and exciting. It will be so sad if we lose the traditional, charity fund-raising carnival processions just because motorised floats are driven out by high insurance costs and alternatives are not arranged to keep alive these highlights of our summer.