Review of the Papers, Thursday 06 June

Government

• Patricia Hewitt was accused yesterday of aggravating regional inequalities in NHS care to meet her promise to stem health service deficits in the last financial year. The Health Secretary faced a barrage of criticism from economists and health professionals over her stewardship of the NHS after disclosing that it had underspent its budget by £510 million last year. The figure fulfilled a government pledge to avoid a third year in the red, but provoked outrage over "excessive" cuts and their impact on waiting lists. The latest unaudited data show that more than one in five NHS bodies in England are still in debt, with about one in ten classed as facing long-term financial challenges. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life-and-style/health/article1896221.ece
• Foundation hospitals in England have accumulated a £1bn treasure chest in profits from treating NHS patients and selling off assets provided free by the government, their regulator disclosed yesterday. Their uninvested reserves came in addition to a £500m underspend by other NHS organisations revealed in the Guardian last week and confirmed yesterday by Patricia Hewitt, the health secretary. She said the figures were evidence that the NHS has returned to robust financial health after two years in deficit. But the trusts' spare cash angered health union leaders who blamed the government for thousands of unnecessary job cuts. http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk-news/story/0,,2097069,00.html
• Network Rail, the rail -infrastructure owner, should improve its performance, particularly in dealing with weather-related delays, after a year without progress, the rail regulator said yesterday. The Office of Rail Regulation also said that it had found Network Rail planned so poorly for a £100m project to upgrade signals that it had breached the conditions of its licence to run the -railways. The finding - the third since Network Rail took over the rail infrastructure in October 2002 - could lead to a fine. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/55f1ee98-1494-11dc-88cb-000b5df10621.html
• The next generation of first-time buyers will face house prices equivalent to ten times their average incomes, putting home ownership out of reach for the majority of young people, a new government agency says today. The average home in England currently costs seven times annual earnings, but that is set to rise to ten times by 2026 even if the Government succeeds in its aim of sharply increasing the rate of homebuilding, the analysis reveals. Campaigners said that the developing crisis would "stop social mobility in its tracks", and force young people to live in overcrowded conditions and take out ever-riskier mortgages. The stark warning comes from the National Housing and Planning Advice Unit (NHPAU), a government agency that officially comes into being today. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/money/mortgages/article1896229.ece
• Stamp duty could be switched from home buyers to sellers to help young people get on the housing ladder, Peter Hain, a candidate for Labour's deputy leadership, proposed yesterday. Mr Hain, the Northern Ireland secretary, said the idea would help to increase the supply of affordable homes, a problem which has emerged as one of the most discussed issues during the deputy leadership hustings. Ballot papers for the contest will start to drop through Labour party members' letterboxes today. http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2097324,00.html
• Absent fathers who fail to pay child maintenance will be placed on a credit blacklist making it virtually impossible for them to take out a loan, mortgage or credit card, ministers announced yesterday. The plan was unveiled as the Government published legislation to replace the Child Support Agency with the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission. CMEC will have more powers to target parents who default on payments. John Hutton, the Work and Pensions Secretary, said he wanted those who refuse to meet their obligations to know that "non-payment brings real and lasting penalties". http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/06/07/ncsa107.xml
• Gordon Brown, the prime minister in waiting, has agreed this week to break with tradition and allow the independent Civil Service Commissioners to vet key appointments to his new team at Number 10. Janet Paraskeva, The First Civil Service Commissioner, has already been consulted on some of Mr Brown's Downing Street appointments and has approved them. These are understood to include the appointment of two foreign policy advisers due to be announced today who are Simon McDonald, former ambassador to Israel and now head of Iraq policy at the Foreign Office, and Jon Cunliffe, second permanent secretary at the Treasury. Two other Treasury men, Michael Ellam and Tom Scholar, are to be, respectively, Mr Brown's official spokesman and chief of staff. The new arrangements over Number 10 posts are part of a bigger shake-up of appointments that will give the Civil Service Commission power to ensure that all of Whitehall's top 200 posts are filled on merit and not on the basis of cronyism. Up to now the commission has regulated all open competitions for Whitehall jobs - the ones where outsiders are able to apply - but it has been given no say in internal promotions or moves. Now it will oversee those postings too. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/4d4954e4-1493-11dc-88cb-000b5df10621.html