Thursday 22 January 2009

A busy day for Edwina

Today Edwin Hart has once again shown that she is a politician that doesn’t flinch at making the big decisions. Not only has she gone against medical advice in keeping two separate sites for Neurology open in South Wales, but she has also given the go ahead for expensive kidney cancer medication to be available on the NHS in Wales, even though this isn’t the case in England.

Edwina Hart is a true flyer of the red flag. Where other politicians like to suggest that they are socialist to the core, when it comes to the crunch they often fold to the pressures of the free market. Here we have the health minister openly supporting patient wishes despite the financial cost, and given today’s economic climate you have to admit it’s a politically gutsy move.

It would have been easy for Mrs Hart to sidle along with the arguments of cutting back and being prudent in this time of recession (as of tomorrow) but no, she has stuck to her principles and acted in the way she feels best, I have to admit that in this age of spin it is refreshing to see a high profile politician act in this manner.

Whatever a politician's beliefs, be they lefty, righty, centrist, slightly lefty... too often we see core principles abandoned for short term political gain. Sometimes, whether we agree or disagree it’s nice to see an elected official do what they said they would, and act according to their conscience. For too long we have watched our politicians play a game of chess in the media trying to convince us that they are something they are not.

Edwina Hart's brand of socialism may not be for everyone, and it may be that her beliefs cost her the Labour leadership, but surely everyone has to have a degree of respect for such a politician in today’s age of political trickery.

Hwyl am y tro

Dewi Un

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8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Last time I checked, there was nothing Socialist about ignoring health care experts and putting people's lives at risk to try and keep your seat. As Dragon's Eye splashed tonight, her decision on neurosurgery was purely political - she couldn't give two hoots about patients. Hart is a charlatan of the first order, and a dangerous one at that. I expect more from you, PC.

Politics Cymru said...

My point in wiriting this blog was to say that i think its refreshing to see a politican sticking to their principles, even if you dont agree with them.

Too often now politicans say whatever they thinik will get them elected, sometimes its nice to hear someone say what they actually think.

I can totally understand if your not inclined to the left wing why she would infuriate you.

It's an interesting debate and one that been raging all day here at politicscymru, not all the other Dewis agree with me!

Thanks for commenting

Dewi Un

Anonymous said...

I have to agree with the anon. You infer that Edwina Hart is acting out of conscience, that would mean going along with medical advice rather than thinking about saving votes locally. Her chosen course of action is both cowardly and dangerous. It is the exact opposite of socialism.

Anonymous said...

Edwina Hart is an opportunist and totally self motivated
Ask her civil servants,she is a nightmare unless of course you are a chosen one

Anonymous said...

I like Edwina, but felt her comments to the BBC were all over the place. She said that "At the end of the day, decisions lie with me as a politician and I was elected to take them." This is blindingly arrogant and wrong. Does this mean the people of Gower are going to be Responsible for every death from brain trauma which could have been prevented if the services were on one site which is Roger Hatfield and his fellow Neurosurgey Consultants opinion? Does this mean that the People of the Vale of Glamorgen get to choose future Education policy in Wales because their AM resides there? Can the people of Ponty decided to blanket the coast of Wales with wind farms, because Ms. Davidson is their AM?. No I think Ms. Hart is no fool, and is thinking of her constituents, who are quite fairly to be considered as users of the Swansea based site, and therefore a justifiable and reasonable consideration for her to take into account, but if we are paying Millions of pounds per year to keep a basket case unit, which the experts say will collapse, so that Ms. Hart can go back to Gower as a working Class hero and keep her seat next time and maybe even the Welsh Leadership, I hope that the price is worth it. As for being a nightmare, we all know she is tough, but she is proud of this reputation and it scores well within her party and fellow AM’s. I am not holding my breath to hear her say she does not want to replace the FM.

Anonymous said...

was speaking to somebody who works at a senior level in the welsh nhs over the weekend. Ms Hart is extremly unpopopular with them and most of their colleagues

the dictactorial style of Hart may have won her short term political advantage but recent desicions, such as this one, and her kicking of the gwent clinical futures programme into the long grass has damaged her reputation as a competant minister.

Y boi i'r job said...

Dwi hefyd yn dueddol o feddwl mai gem boliticaidd sy'n cael ei chwarae gan Edwina Hart. Mae argymhellion NICE ynglyn a'r cyffuriau cancr i'w gyhoeddi yn fuan iawn. Trwy wneud y cyhoeddiad yma mae Edwina Hart wedi peidio aros am farn yr arbenngiwyr ar y mater. Gweithred hollol anghyfrifol yn fy marn i. Mae'n wir fod nifer o gelifion yn mynd i fanteisio o'r penderfyniad ac o ganlyniad mae'n symudiad poblogaidd iawn gyda'r etholwyr. Ond a ddylai hyn fod ar draul aros am farn arbennigol?

Anonymous said...

Edwina Hart takes politically popular decisions, and doesn’t care about the quality of service offered to NHS patients.

What she does do is show is the poor quality of opposition within Wales, who seem unable to challenge her. A small but simple quick win for the Tories would be her policy on St Luke’s hospital for the clergy. This allows a small number of patients with a particular religious denomination choose to go to London NHS hospitals , when no one else in Wales can, clearly in breach of the equality act 2006.