“The government is looking to privatise the NHS Blood and Transplant Service.”

No it isn’t. Not even the Tories are that damn stupid.

They’re looking to tender out to the private sector some of the supporting parts of the service: storage, say, transport.

“64% of people oppose plans to use private companies to run part of the NHS Blood and Transplant Service”

Then 64% of the public are blindingly stupid. For parts of it are *already* done in the private sector. And we don’t see them demanding that those get taken back in house, do we?

Perhaps that’s because Comrade Dave hasn’t seen fit to tell people that then? For of course, is some transport is already done by for profit private sector companies it rather undermines the outrage about more of the transport being done by for profit private sector companies, doesn’t it?

The clear danger with this type of policy is that if blood donators think someone may be making money from them they will stop donating. Although in true Tory Market style we will end with another USA import and start paying for blood donations which I’m sure is in a policy one someone desk already just waiting for approval?

@1

You sure about that? http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/8337237/David-Cameron-promises-public-sector-revolution.html

Has anyone looked to see what happens in the healthcare systems of other west European countries? Presumably, they also need blood for transfusions and by many accounts, in terms of outcomes for patients, the quality of healthcare is at least up to the standards of the NHS.

@2

You’re a little out of date there. When the US blood transfusion service started to label blood as from paid donors, or from volunteers, the purchasers (yes, all blood is purchased, even in the NHS, because it does cost money to test, transport, store, even if it is donated) preferred the volunteer blood so much more that they drove the paid for blood off the market.

Which is the answer to @3. It’s a well known result in health care circles. Absolutely no one is going to be stupid enough to try and recruit paid donors for blood. Absolutely all that anyone is talking about is whether it should be the government, charities or for profit companies which organise and run the system.