Most precious thing we have

The latest of these was that of the elderly woman who requested an ambulance because she was suffering from chest pains – but by the time paramedics arrived, some three hours later, the poor woman was dead and incapable of being resuscitated.

On top of all this are the cancellations and postponements of thousands of operations, plus regular reports about horrendously long waits by patients attending A & E departments.

None of this is the fault of the NHS, which is horribly overworked. The Prime Minister has announced more money for the NHS, but one-off boosters are not enough. Something extra has to be done to ensure the service is not automatically subject to these grave crises at “peak periods”. I can see no other way than to go straight to the pockets of the taxpayer and increase the National Insurance payments. The NHS is the most precious thing we’ve got, and it cannot be allowed to die. Its creation is probably the greatest domestic political achievement since the war. And suggestions that the Tories would want to let the NHS run down and disappear are bunkum. I can think of nothing more likely to lose an election than to lose the NHS.

- It now looks as though serious consideration is being given in Washington to President Donald Trump’s state of mental health. Even by his own spectacularly bizarre standards, it certainly seems a little odd to describe yourself as a “stable genius”.

One is forced to wonder how this character managed to win his way into the White House. Admittedly, the Democrats put up a pretty feeble candidate in Hillary Clinton.

He is the man who leads the free world – but Americans (and others) must be teetering with increasing nervousness at his often rash actions and comments.

Perhaps the explosive new book, Fire And Fury, which is selling like hot cakes in America, will serve at least to calm him down.

Let us hope so.