Latest news with #Crosland
Mint
12-07-2025
- Business
- Mint
A Wealth Tax Would Signal Britain Is Closed for Business
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- As the UK teetered on the edge of an economic precipice 50 years ago, Environment Secretary Anthony Crosland, Labour's leading public intellectual, warned improvident local councils that 'the party is over.' The author of the optimistic tract The Future of Socialism was sounding the death knell of an era of seemingly limitless public spending. Crosland's speech, written by my former Times colleague David Lipsey who passed away last weekend, detonated like a bomb. Many Labour party officials, however, responded by sticking their fingers in their ears — the left opposed fiscal restraint even when Britain had to turn to the International Monetary Fund for a bailout. Margaret Thatcher, the newly elected Conservative opposition leader, however, took Crosland's words to heart and waited for her moment. This week, the Office for Budget Responsibility published a statement on the UK's fiscal risks that could have been lifted straight from Crosland: Britain is living beyond its means and must face up to reality. Publication of the OBR report has come 12 months too late to do Crosland's Labour successors much good. Had Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves detailed an honest analysis of the country's predicament from the outset — and blamed her Tory predecessors for it — she would have more political buy-in for spending restraint. That moment has now passed; and, as in the 1970s, many Labour Members of Parliament are refusing to acknowledge the dire reality of the economy. The watchdog of the public finances usually wags a friendly tail at chancellors, but this time the OBR bared its teeth, saying the government 'cannot afford the array of promises it has made to the public.' Nothing new here: The country's public finances have been left in a 'relatively vulnerable position' by successive governments. But instead of making the 'hard choices' called for by the OBR, Keir Starmer's government has abandoned a number of public spending cuts after backbench rebellions. The party's well and truly over and now the hangover begins. The UK has the sixth-highest debt, the fifth-highest deficit and the third-highest borrowing costs among 36 advanced economies. Worse, the UK has failed to reduce public debt after it soared during the pandemic and energy crisis, leaving the country increasingly vulnerable to external shocks. Wiser heads in Cabinet are trying to knock sense into their colleagues. Pat McFadden, the cabinet office minister who still bears the scars of Tony Blair's attempts to impose public-service reform on an unwilling Labour party, says with quiet menace that 'you can't spend money twice.' The government may have to delay scrapping the hated two-child benefit limit imposed by the Tories. The measure would cost £3.5 billion ($4.7 billion), but the rebels have forced ministers to drop £5 billion worth of disability entitlement savings. Having tasted blood, Labour's left-wing has also set its sights on reforms to the rules that allow hundreds of thousands of children to be designated with costly 'special needs,' the annual bill to local councils for which is £12 billion and rising. This bodes ill for the chancellor. As it is, Reeves is barely meeting her fiscal rules. Money is so tight that a government headed by a former human rights lawyer is seriously considering limiting the ancient right to trial by jury just to save cash. And where Labour leads, the trade unions follow. Some 53,000 doctors represented by the British Medical Association (BMA) have voted on a low turnout for six months of strike action to back up their demands for a wholly unrealistic 29% pay rise. Last year, the doctors were awarded a whopping 22% pay deal without any corresponding changes to their working practices. The government's logic was pragmatic — voters thought medics had a reasonable case in making up arrears in lost pay, and ministers were anxious to buy off a prolonged strike which had led to the cancellation of 1.5 million medical appointments. This time, opinion polls suggest voters are unpersuaded by the strikers. The reform-minded Health Secretary Wes Streeting's response has therefore been robust. 'The public will not forgive strike action in these circumstances, and nor will I,' he told the Times. Fighting talk — but these days, who can be certain that a wobbly government won't cave? Other public-sector unions are watching closely. The chancellor's naivety is coming back to haunt her. In her first budget, Reeves made a rash promise: 'I'm not coming back with more borrowing and more taxes' — and then spent all the money she'd raised from business on the health service and generous public sector wage settlements. Reeves must now look to higher taxes in the autumn to balance her books. That doesn't seem to bother Labour MPs, who've set their hearts on soaking the rich — yet taxes on wealthy foreigners have already driven away thousands to Milan, Dubai and other tax-friendlier regimes. A wealth tax, floated by former Labour leader Neil Kinnock last weekend, would truly bring us back to the 1970s, when eye-wateringly high levies drove entrepreneurs, artists and pop stars into exile. If she travels down this road, Reeves will send out a message to the world that Britain is closed for business. More from Bloomberg Opinion: This column reflects the personal views of the author and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners. Martin Ivens is the editor of the Times Literary Supplement. Previously, he was editor of the Sunday Times of London and its chief political commentator. More stories like this are available on
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Defense Health Agency Director Ends 32-Year Career with Unceremonious, Abrupt Retirement
Army Lt. Gen. Telita Crosland, the Defense Health Agency's top official, retired last week, according to a surprise announcement from the Pentagon on Friday. Dr. Stephen Ferrara, acting assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, said Crosland, who had served as the agency's director for two years, was "beginning her retirement" effective Friday. No reason was given for her departure; Crosland had been scheduled to speak Monday at the AMSUS Society of Federal Health Professionals' annual meeting in National Harbor, Maryland. Her departure follows the high-profile firings last month of top military leaders, including Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. "CQ" Brown, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti, Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Jim Slife, and the services' top attorneys. Read Next: Fear and Chaos Hit Military Families After Sudden Firings of Top Leaders "I want to thank Lt. Gen. Crosland for her dedication to the nation, to the Military Health System, and to Army Medicine for the past 32 years," Ferrara said in a statement. Crosland graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, in 1989 and earned her medical degree from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences before embarking on a career as a family medicine physician. She was the fourth director of the Defense Health Agency and the third Black woman to reach the rank of lieutenant general in the Army. When she assumed the role of DHA director, she pledged to focus on serving patients, creating a Defense Department medical system that best served active-duty members and their families. Under her watch, the DHA completed the rollout of its MHS Genesis electronic health records system, a $5.5 billion program that provided and managed a new medical records system built to be interoperable with the Department of Veterans Affairs system. The DHA also consolidated the organization's 20 regional medical markets into nine networks led by a general or flag officer who has responsibilities for both the service medical command duties -- taking care of active-duty personnel -- and the DHA, which manages hospitals, training, supplies, procurement, and the Tricare health program for military dependents and retirees. The news also follows reports of short- or understaffed military health facilities including Naval Hospital Bremerton, Washington, which planned to transfer roughly 700 Medicare-eligible internal medicine patients to civilian providers since shortages left the clinic manned with one physician for 2,200 beneficiaries, according to the Kitsap Sun. Other hospitals, like Naval Hospital Okinawa, also have been chronically understaffed, resulting in stress for military personnel and families. And last month, deferred maintenance at the system's premier medical facility, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland -- where President Donald Trump is scheduled to receive his annual physical next month -- caused flooding and other system failures that delayed surgeries and sent patients elsewhere. Since Jan. 1, patients who use the Tricare health program also have experienced delays in specialty referrals and care, while some providers still have not been paid in more than eight weeks following a changeover in Tricare regional contract management companies and payment processors in the Tricare East and West Regions. As a result of those problems, Crosland issued a letter Feb. 3 to all Tricare beneficiaries saying the DHA had taken a number of steps to fix the issues and aimed to insulate patients from the turmoil. "Individuals who need health care should get that care regardless of TriWest's ability to manage the process," Crosland wrote, referring to the Tricare West regional contractor, which assumed management of the West Region on Jan. 1. According to Ferrara, Dr. David Smith, who served as assistant secretary of defense for health affairs in 2017 and from 2021 to 2022, will serve as acting DHA director. reached out to Crosland on Monday for comment. She said she had nothing more to add than what had been released. Related: Tricare to Allow Patients in Tricare West Region to Receive Specialty Care Without Preapproval
Yahoo
02-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Black woman general in charge of military health care resigns abruptly
WASHINGTON — The head of the Pentagon's sprawling health care system resigned abruptly Friday a week after the Trump administration purged several top military officers, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Army Lt. Gen. Telita Crosland, who had overseen the Defense Health Agency, has been replaced, according to a statement issued by the Stephen Ferrara, the acting assistant secretary of Defense for Health Affairs. The Defense Health Agency provides access to health care for 9.5 million troops, their families and retirees. Ferrara announced in the statement that Crosland, a family practice physician, 'is beginning her retirement.' Last week, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth fired the nation's most senior military officer, Air Force Gen. C.Q. Brown, a Black officer whom Hegseth had criticized in a book for supporting diversity efforts. Hegseth also fired Adm. Lisa Franchetti, the Navy's top officer, and the top lawyers for each of the Armed Services. Ferrara, in a statement, thanked Crosland for her 32 years of service and named David Smith as her replacement while a search for her replacement begins. Crosland is a Black woman. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Black woman general in charge of military health care resigns abruptly
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Defense Health Agency head forced to abruptly retire: Report
The head of the Defense Health Agency (DHA), the health system for millions of service members and their dependents, was forced to abruptly retire Friday, Reuters reported. Army Lt. Gen. Telita Crosland, one of the most senior Black female officers in the Army who has served in her role since January 2023, 'is beginning her retirement' as of Friday morning, according to a statement from Stephen Ferrara, the acting assistant secretary of defense for health affairs. The statement offered no reasoning for Crosland's quick departure, but two officials told Reuters that she was informed that she must retire and was not given a reason why. The move comes exactly a week after President Trump fired six senior military officers, including the Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman and the first female head of the Navy. 'I want to thank Crosland for her dedication to the nation, to the military health system, and to Army medicine for the past 32 years,' Ferrara said in the statement. Crosland, the first Black woman to lead the Defense Health Agency, graduated from the U.S. Military Academy West Point and entered the Army as a Medical Corps officer in 1993. Prior to her last role, the highly decorated officer served as the Army's deputy surgeon general, according to her official Defense Department biography. Under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Pentagon has moved to quickly oust diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, arguing without proof that they wreak havoc on unit cohesion. 'The single dumbest phrase in military history is 'our diversity is our strength,'' Hegseth said earlier this month during a town hall meeting at the Pentagon. 'From our perspective, why do you get rid of something like DEI? Because from our perspective, it's served a purpose of dividing the force, as opposed to uniting the force.' Trump administration defense officials have also ordered the end of commemorations of identity month celebrations including Black History Month and Women's History Month, and directed the Pentagon to erase all DEI content from its digital footprint. That all comes as the military prepares to kick out all transgender service members. In Crosland's place, David Smith, the acting principal deputy assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, will serve as the acting director of the DHA while the department works through the nomination process for her replacement. 'Dr. Smith is a steady hand with decades of experience in the Military Health System in and out of uniform. I ask everyone to support Dr. Smith and the entire DHA team as we stabilize and strengthen our system serving the most lethal fighting force on the planet,' Ferrara said. Headquartered in Falls Church, Va., the DHA employs nearly 130,000 civilians and military personnel to serve 9.5 million service members and military retirees and their families. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
01-03-2025
- Health
- The Hill
Defense Health Agency head forced to abruptly retire: Report
The head of the Defense Health Agency (DHA), the health system for millions of service members and their dependents, was forced to abruptly retire Friday, Reuters reported. Army Lt. Gen. Telita Crosland, one of the most senior Black female officers in the Army who has served in her role since January 2023, 'is beginning her retirement' as of Friday morning, according to a statement from Stephen Ferrara, the acting assistant secretary of defense for health affairs. The statement offered no reasoning for Crosland's quick departure, but two officials told Reuters that she was informed that she must retire and was not given a reason why. The move comes exactly a week after President Trump fired six senior military officers, including the Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman and the first female head of the Navy. 'I want to thank Crosland for her dedication to the nation, to the military health system, and to Army medicine for the past 32 years,' Ferrara said in the statement. Crosland, the first Black woman to lead the Defense Health Agency, graduated from the U.S. Military Academy West Point and entered the Army as a Medical Corps officer in 1993. Prior to her last role, the highly decorated officer served as the Army's deputy surgeon general, according to her official Defense Department biography. Under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Pentagon has moved to quickly oust diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, arguing without proof that they wreak havoc on unit cohesion. 'The single dumbest phrase in military history is 'our diversity is our strength,'' Hegseth said earlier this month during a town hall meeting at the Pentagon. 'From our perspective, why do you get rid of something like DEI? Because from our perspective, it's served a purpose of dividing the force, as opposed to uniting the force.' Trump administration defense officials have also ordered the end of commemorations of identity month celebrations including Black History Month and Women's History Month, and directed the Pentagon to erase all DEI content from its digital footprint. That all comes as the military prepares to kick out all transgender service members. In Crosland's place, David Smith, the acting principal deputy assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, will serve as the acting director of the DHA while the department works through the nomination process for her replacement. 'Dr. Smith is a steady hand with decades of experience in the Military Health System in and out of uniform. I ask everyone to support Dr. Smith and the entire DHA team as we stabilize and strengthen our system serving the most lethal fighting force on the planet,' Ferrara said. Headquartered in Falls Church, Va., the DHA employs nearly 130,000 civilians and military personnel to serve 9.5 million service members and military retirees and their families.
