Dr ROBERT GALLOWAY’s letter (January 8) regarding the National Health Service raises many issues. To refer to the prime minister as a liar is wrong. This is an unnecessary slur.

The Conservative party’s record on the NHS matches if not exceeds that of Labour. Indeed persistent Labour claims that the Tories are out to destroy free health care is the biggest lie.

The previous Labour government made many changes most of which were not beneficial. The NHS will always consume vast amounts of cash. Life expectancy is increasing. This means that people living longer will require more treatment due to ageing. Large scale immigration will also add pressure to the system. The NHS was badly set up. It has never been properly overhauled with the result that the whole system is unsuited for the 21st century.

The genesis of the welfare state was set out in the Beveridge report in 1942. So despite their claims the NHS is not a Labour creation but it was Nye Bevan, the Labour health minister, who introduced the system.

GPs were not absorbed into the NHS. Their services are private. The NHS is billed for their services. The British model of health care has not been copied anywhere in the world. Indeed the Americans cite it as a horrible example.

The French and Australians have superior health services, both of which are free at the point of service but are privately run.

The National Insurance contribution should be treated as a state premium to fund free NHS treatment from a privately run service.

State run organisations invariably create bureaucracy and inefficiency. But the private sector must be involved in any revamped NHS.

Richard Szypulski Lavender Street, Brighton