My care was private but I assume the doctor also practises and was trained within the NHS.

As long as you are ok, that is all that matters.

rlWe shall see.rl

Amazing.. Labour have to have every single policy costed to the penny or they are vilified as irresponsible with the economy

Tories announce a policy with no costing after nearly doubling the national debt and the vagueness is perfectly acceptable!

So you would sacrifice your health and that of your family for someone else - of course you would!!

I pay for private health so I didn't burden the NHS and they could use their value resources part of which I contributed towards on other more needy individuals - altruism - actions speak louder than words

The lack of aspiration to achieve and the hatred of high earning achievers shown by the lefties on here(and by Corbyn) is remarkable.

The days of nationalised industry are long gone never to return. Thankfully the majority of the UK sees that the world is a changing place and we must keep up with it if we want to proser as a nation.

In 4 weeks time we will see the end of the 'peoples party' because it just isn't for the people its for the needy(and lazy).

Just like you - as I said you talk the talk the talk but when push come to shove you are no better an animal than the rest of us.

This country is not perfect - life is not perfect the sooner everyone accepts that you can intervene to a certain point but you will never make everyone equal it is just not possible

Where else in the world would you prefer to live that would offer you what this country actually offers - if you are really sick the NHS offers a service comparable to anywhere in the world.

Is this country fair - to 99% of the population yes it is - there will always be people driving Ferraris or born into money or more intelligent etc. The vast majority of the population go to work, get paid and get on with life. So in your opinion what is not fair and how many does it actually impact?

The polarisation of wealth isn't great but its inevitable is easy to accumulate wealth from a lofty position but this is a country that encourages entrepreneurship and many of the wealthy started with nothing and have accumulated huge wealth through skill, risk taking and hard work - but that is all wrong in your book which is a bizarre notion because without them most people wouldn't have a job.

Have you ever travelled to the 'Eastern Bloc', Cuba, N Korea......... There is absolutely nothing we should be looking to copy. All this rubbish that education is great, the health system is world leading are just myths. Equally wealth is spread evenly. Putin is reported to be potentially the wealthiest guy in the world, No not Zuckerburg, nor Gates or other IT yanks!! Remarkable, not forgetting the grub who ruled Cuba and his ships, mansions and islands

I was recently working in the east and was chatting with the guys at work, they absolutely want what we have and not what they've come from. The elderly still look back fondly on communism and equality from there grubby state flats and reflect on the past as the state kept them alive.

Give me your address and I'll send you a medal. I've got plenty don't worry about sending another

Your clearly happy with a poor level of healthcare for some and 5 star treatment for the better off. A great level of health care world renowned and respected. And yes if you can afford a consultant operating on your leg rather than a trainee Dr good look to you. Do you also hate Bentley owners??

It's quite the opposite of what you suggest. The barriers for aspirational kids from unprivileged backgrounds are higher now than at any point since the war.

Education chronically underfunded and churning out young people lacking basic skills, social care being cut so no help for those that fall off the wagon for whatever reason. Wages not keeping up with inflation over the last 10 years mean those that want to save to retrain or get some security from buying their own property just can't afford to do it.

They are also being deterred from higher education due to outrageous fees for the same education that your much vaunted achievers got for free.

No hatred of high earning achievers but if we are to have future generations of achievers, we need to water the soil that they grow from.

No one is advocating communism! All Corbyn is suggesting is a slight redistribution of wealth. This rampant free market obsession that we have at the moment leads to high immigration and suppresses wages/rights for workers. The whole model of trickle down ecomonics is proven to be a busted flush as the countries wealth flows upwards, rather than into the pockets of those who do that actual work.

Opportunity for all has never been greater. In the past it was school 'til 16 then work in the local industry. Now kids stay on 'til they are 18 and have the opportunity to go to uni. Yes there is a fee but you don't pay it back until you earn X. That didn't exist in the 80's. In this era you can reinvent yourself at an age. The opportunities are out there it just takes motivation. Unfortunately responses like yours just smell of accepted failure, now where is the state to help me. Forget the excuses and get motivated to succeed. The welfare propping up system is gone thankfully.

Last night I was watching some guy on the box talking about how business in some areas are struggling to find the talent for there vacancies. This wasn't just the SE but included the midlands etc It wasn't just tech/engineering companies either, he mentioned plenty of blue collar work.

University education was grant maintained in the 80s. No loans and no fees. Now fees alone are at least 9k a year. Thus university education comes at a cost where it didn't before.

That's the problem - used to be that non-academically minded folk could leave school, knowing that they could walk into a job in the factory/pit/steelworks and have a job for life, promotion pretty much nailed on based on years of service rather than merit and strong union representation.

Contrast that to today and these low skilled jobs are now in warehousing and distribution etc. A vast majority hire using agencies or on 0 hours contracts, which give you very little security. Add in the unions destroyed by thatcher and there is very little security for people to build their stall on. Again if you find yourself without work, you face a 6 week wait for any income from the state, leading to rent arrears, missed bill payments etc.

You can have all the motivation you want, but if you are struggling to meet your basic needs, then that leaves little room for upskilling, retraining etc. Giving a bit back (eg free school meals for kids, £10 min wage) will give a bit of breathing room for people to grow and focus on other things than immediate survival.