Passports ... Get Yer Passports... Only A Pony, Guv...

An interesting story here on the BBC Website this morning. It seems 3000 passports and visa stickers were stolen en route to an RAF base from where they were to be sent to embassies worldwide. But fear not, says "Not Flash, Just Gordon" 's minions. The items are quite unusable and have no value on the black market as they are fitted with new state of the art ID chips.

No Value On The Black Market ? Really ?

Remind me again what you need to wave to get more than three hundred quid out of a bank these days. Other than a gun, that is. And for that matter what you need to open an account. Or buy a house. Or do just about anything else. After all, it was Gordon Brown that demanded our financial institutions do sod all for you unless you wave one of these documents, so why should he be surprised when a few thousand go missing. And whose fault will it be when the immigration agencies get handed photocopies of the passports handed over by next month's cocklepickers ?

And how many estate agents will have the same technology as fitted to terminal five ? Actually it's just as well they don't. You wouldn't want your solicitor conveyancing a house in Perth Australia while your Laugh A Minute HIP Kit describes a house in Perth, Scotland.

But I wonder just how 'secure' those documents really are and how much technology I'd need to overwrite them. Given the way APACS did Chip and Pin on the cheap, I bet little more than I could fit in the boot of a reliant robin at a car boot sale.

60 years of the NHS and we still stuff doctors mouths with gold - for doing sod all

If you lived the last three months in a coma you might have missed the efforts of New Liebour to trumpet the 60th Anniversary of the work of this chap.

But fear not, when you come out of the coma the yellowed bunting will still be there adorning your ward. That'll be the bunting they put up in 1948 of course.

So how have we done then ? Well Nye Bevan of course found out that no doctors will agree to anyuthing unless someone has already "stuffed their mouths with gold". And how appropriate it must be then to see this tradition is still ongoing.


Over here you can read how Doctor Amjad Husien has done rather well. Who is Doctor Huisien ? You may well ask. I'm sure his profession would prefer you not be reminded, for their official policy is to punish whistleblowers, bury the mistake and move on quietly. Ask the anaesthetist who blew the whistle on the incometent child killers at Bristol's Child Cardiac Unit in the 80's for a start.

But back to Mr Husien. In 2005 problems were noted in his work in breast cancer screening at Trafford and North Manchester General. Specifically, a total of 22 patients he diagnosed as clear of cancer were nothing of the sort. For each of those came the shock of disclosure that they had been told they were free of disease and were nothing of the sort, and the fear that this killer now had a firm foothold where it might have been previously nipped in the bud. Details of these women's additional pain and suffering are not easy to come by. All that is being said is that one of the 22 died, but of course the doctor's unions will make sure we never know if her death was avoidable or whether Husien has her blood on hios hands.

And although twenty two women were given the worst possible wake-up call to incompetence in the NHS, a total of TWO HUNDRED were sent a letter recalling them for a second time, and some of those were also being recalled two years after the event.

Just stop and imagine that. You've seen all those slushy cancer charity ads with people being told 'you're clear'. Well imagine you were starring in that for real life and TWO YEARS later someone tells you 'actually, we screwed up'.

Hanging is truly too good for this incompetent.

But what punishment was meted out ? Well, it seems the good doctor was sent home to prune his roses, during which time he was able to grow a whole hedge of laurels from which to make a cushion to sit on, and boy was he able to afford to buy them, for he sat suspended ON FULL PAY of £75000 for THREE YEARS.

ALMOST A QUARTER OF A MILLION SMACKEROONIES were suffed into this man's wallet.

And then when the General Medical Council FINALLY got off their arse and banned him from practice for twelve months he tried to appeal against the ruling.

It seems Doctir Husien FINALLY "quit" his post and withdrew his appeal.

I wonder where he is now ?