(not satire – it’s the UK today!)
I’m not sure what would normally constitute a political scandal of massive proportions – but surely this should be a contender.
Turns out the coalition government has secretly sold the entire NHS patient data for England to a private firm headed by a disgraced former Barclays banker.
The sale only came to light after the firm – PA Consulting Group – boasted about the fact buried deep in one of its documents.
Here’s the relevant section from the document called Future of Healthcare:
The Guardian has an article today asking questions about how a private company could manage to buy supposedly personal data of NHS patients:
NHS England patient data uploaded to Google servers
But what the Guardian article doesn’t mention is that PA Consulting is a management consultancy company chaired by a former banker – Marcus Agius.
Before he joined PA Consulting, Agius had to resign from Barclays along with Bob Diamond after the Libor scandal.
So the government hasn’t just sold off our private personal data to a private firm without telling us – turns out they’ve sold it to a disgraced banker.
Time was, this information would have constituted a scandal massive enough to bring about top level resignations, perhaps even bring down the government itself.
No more it seems.
.
Please share if you think more people should know about this.
And please feel free to comment.
.
Pride's Purge 
Reblogged this on gingerblokeblog and commented:
The government is carrying through with it’s immoral and unethical plan to make as much money out of it’s citizens as possible. But who will see the benefits of any money made from selling of our personal health records, the NHS? I think not.
LikeLike
Is this the Marcus Agius who is also a non-executive director of the BBC? http://www.bbc.co.uk/aboutthebbc/insidethebbc/managementstructure/biographies/agius_marcus/
LikeLike
Yes – the same.
LikeLike
its getting worse now we get a bankster with our records
LikeLike
This government does not care at all about it’s own citizens, away with it.
LikeLike
Reblogged this on glynismillward189.
LikeLike
Surely if this information is of and about the “patient” it is them that should be paid for it…non?
LikeLike
This government is without doubt the worst one in my lifetime. I am 65 in June and if the Conservatives win the next election and if Scotland does not vote for Independence, I will not bother to make it to 70!!!!!
LikeLike
Reblogged this on Vox Political and commented:
It’s old news that the hospital data – covering 47 million people’s personal information – was sold, but we didn’t know who had it until now. The fact that the government sold it to a company chaired by a former banker who was disgraced DURING THIS GOVERNMENT’S PERIOD IN OFFICE is the new scandal.
It is yet another indicator – as if we needed it! – that the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats running our public services think they are above the law and can do anything they like.
Are they right?
LikeLike
Cant find a way to share this on facebook???
LikeLike
At the end of the blog post there should be an array of buttons – including a blue facebook one with the word ‘like’ on it. If it’s not there try reloading the page.
LikeLike
Reblogged this on Beastrabban’s Weblog and commented:
This should raise serious alarm bells about the government and its claims to sound, ethical management. Not only should there be a scandal about the sale of confidential patient information to private industry, its sale to a disgraced former banker should be even more of a cause for serious concern. Marcus Agius was guilty of serious wrongdoing in the manipulation of Libor, and this surely should have disqualified him from any further dealings with sensitive personal information. Sadly, however, the Coalition clearly doesn’t believe so, which shows the complete absence of any kind of morality at the heart of this government.
LikeLike
Pingback: Government sells entire NHS patient data to fir...
It becomes clearer and clearer that we, the citizens of this country, are being sold by the coalition to their chums and donors to be their future revenue streams in perpetuity.
LikeLike
I think the big political scandal here is not what the government are doing but that there seems no way to stop them.
LikeLike
Reblogged this on kickingthecat.
LikeLike
There is always a way Graham if people had the will yet there are too many sheeple content to just make another cup of tea.
LikeLike
Tom that only “likes” the post, it does not share it 😦
LikeLike
Oh really? So, copy the address and paste it on Facebook instead:
LikeLike
Being a disgraced low-life that by rights belongs in jail doesn’t matter much. Agius is doing all right: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcus_Agius
It’s enough to make you sick!
LikeLike
The question is:
Is this legal? Do patients waive rights to data protection by entering hospital? Is the NHS exempt from data protection? If so when, where, how etc? Can patients sue for data selling?
LikeLike
Has anything this government done been legal, but it forges ahead full speed with welfare reform.
The plague wouldn’t bring this lot down!
LikeLike
Reblogged this on Jay's Journal and commented:
Doing as they like…
LikeLike
Another damned disgrace and another plus for the unelected coalition – who knew that they would get away with selling anything to anyone, even the devil himself.
Why? Because they know that the people of this country more interested in the next episode of Coronation Street, or Top Gear, to even be bothered. Then the people sit and watch the news and believe anything that they hear, without having the brain cells to work things out for themselves.
I know that this coalition has taken so much from so many, including lives, which they should be severely punished for, but the people of the country haven’t helped either. If you just let things bad things happen, sit back and don’t really complain, then that makes you as bad as, or even worse than the coalition.
We are an extremely sad country full of sad people.
LikeLike
lucy reynolds vid shines light on it all…
LikeLike
Pingback: Government sells entire NHS patient data to firm headed by disgraced banker | stewilko's Blog
Reblogged this on Benefit tales.
LikeLike
Your previous proposal is that all government should be replaced by internet polls. Do you still think that? Would you like to expand on how that would work?
LikeLike
The previous government took FAR more lives than this one! 100,000+ in Iraq and many thousands more in Afghanistan… or are you uninterested in the fate of people in other countries?
If you think most people don’t have the brain cells to work things out for themselves, then you must think democracy is useless. If so, what is your alternative suggestion for running a country?
LikeLike
f f
if people bother to listen to lucy reynolds vid (below) they will hear the whole story of collusion and also, almost as a side note, why health records are being sold off, all to make money for the banks….
LikeLike
If it includes true personal data, name/ address/ hospital number/ NHS number, then it is right to be concerned. If it is just age and diagnosis, then no, it could be used to provide data about resources are needed and where, just meta-analysis that the NHS already undertakes, but probably cheaper and a lot faster, the NHS is notoriously shite when it comes to computers so it may save us some dough in the long run and allow us to keep the essential services under the NHS umbrella.
LikeLike
OBD – I don’t disagree with you about that (or perhaps only partly). I was pointing out to jaypot that the Blair government killed far more people than this one has. Also that if jaypot thinks most people don’t have enough brain cells to make sensible decisions, then democracy is a fundamentally flawed concept. I disagree – I think most people can make sensible decisions, and they really want to do so, but good information is what is lacking. The bizarre drivel we often see on sites such as this doesn’t help. The more we discuss, the more we understand…
LikeLike
My understanding is that the data don’t include name or NHS number, but do include postcode. If the data are used for medical research purposes then it is a really important resource which could save many lives, and one which countries which don’t have an NHS couldn’t possibly have. If the data are going to be SOLD for other purposes, such as insurance analysis, then I am totally opposed.
LikeLike
f f
and i was agreeing with you (only partly), and implying that they are as bad as each other, to the point of almost being the same, as near as makes no difference, and also drawing attention to the fabulous analysis of lucy reynolds, which imo will move the dabate on, to agreeing that the labtorydems are in fact as bad as each other, that’s all….
LikeLike
and ps if people don’t think that watching the LR vid is worthwhile, then imho they would be wrong….
LikeLike
You forgot – we’re not citizens we’re subjects. And yes, Thatcher sold the houses, the water and all the physical things so this is the continuation of the that going back to the enclosures and now all our other assets into perpetuity. Next DNA, cells and children, thoughts and creative ideas. I’m sure they’re working on it.
LikeLike