Actually, listening carefully to the words of UK conservative politocos, their promises to increase the real budget of the NHS annually through beyond 2011 seem to be undermined by unformulated suggestions of future proposals to ensure sensible use of the system. I suspect that that means that if the conservatives do work their usual malice NHS care will be denied to those deemed undeserving.

But the truth in UK political terms is indeed that any political party that proposed the abolition of universal free at the point of care healthcare based on need criteria would be committing electoral suicide.

It is wholly fantastic that a country without such a system can seek to call itself civilised.

It is also pretty fantastic that only one of the recent US political candidates (Kucinich) really proposed a proper solution. Obama's plans are, it seems to me, reform and not revolution. It is the latter that is needed.