AS PART of a local spat Dr Colin brown calls for a 'mature GP debate'.

Before the 1997 election, Blair apocalyptically claimed that there were only two weeks left in which to save the NHS by voting Labour MPs whom Dr Brown commends so highly raised expectations sky high. Having achieved their landslide, absurdly distorting targets were set and controlling bodies within the NHS were stuffed with Labour supporters: Labour claimed 1999-2000 would be 'the year of delivery'. We know what happened. A political crisis had arisen, so 'education, education, education', was superseded by 'health, health, health', with the PM in charge, and 'dosh' spurting out. It has quite unbalanced mature reflection on the fundamental problem, though it shouldn't.

In Kendal there is great rejoicing because a heart patient after 17 months wait for a 'quadruple heart by-pass' (as the paper puts it) operation went to London sponsored by the 'Heartline' campaigners and met Health Minister John Denham. Hey presto! the lucky grandfather has had the operation in Manchester with many photographs of it all.

All of this emphasizes the cynical, tawdry political pantomime we endure due to the politicization of health care deliver. So if there is to be a mature debate, for the first time in over 50 years, the best starting point would be to ask "Is the most appropriate system of health care a nationalised monopoly service, with a politician - the Health Secretary in the Cabinet - playing God?" No other country has chosen to do so and many of them get much better results.

Dr John Findlater

Lindeth Road

Silverdale