The NHS and Social Care need radical overhauls perhaps investigating/adopting systems from other countries like Australia and France whose health and care services exceed the quality and outcomes of the UK’s by substantial margins. Right now the UK’s health, care and dentistry provisions are some of the worst in the developed world.

The UK is desperate for improved short-term economic growth. We criminally departed from the EU but the sure single thing that would increase desperately needed GDP quickly is the UK rejoining the EU Customs Union and Single Market. It is beyond me that this government refuses even to consider the move instead preferring to pursue so-called ‘trade deals’ with countries most of which (70 in fact) already have trade deals with the EU. There is also a major question mark over just how beneficial the much vaunted deals with India and the USA will be. As far as I can see they will lead to increased imports, degraded standards and increased problems for our farming communities.

It is time for the UK to modernise its electoral system to make it more representative and fairer. Right now it is neither of these two vital elements, more often than not leading to an elected dictatorship with a single party with the power to do anything it wishes. For me the extended parliamentary voting on leaving the EU represented democracy at its best and should have led to coalescence to emerge with a softer and more effective agreement. The government is trying to improve the current deal but I don’t foresee anything tangible emerging without an agreement on the Single Market and Customs Union (the items Trump hates with a vengeance!).

Evidence of current government incompetence are becoming increasingly common. As soon as Labour won power the mistakes tumbled out from this Chancellor who seemed to make decisions without consultation or investigation or political nous. And the mistakes keep coming with negative rumblings from Labour back benches…Labour had 14 years to prepare for government and to properly understand the state of the UK. Starmer proclaims that the country needs to repair its foundations. The problem is that he fails to recognise that foundations need adequate depth to be effective. The UK’s problems are more than skin-deep. Superficial, finance-based measures therefore have no chance of curing the country’s ills. Short-termism - the scourge of UK governance for many years - will only lead to increased population frustration and discomfort. And the belief that this Labour government just doesn’t understand the country’s current and future challenges. It is therefore no surprise to me that Labour MPs are also feeling the frustration and rebelling against legislation and the steady journey away from socialist principles.