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Kate Plummer
Jun 07, 2022
Boris Johnson tells cabinet there is 'ample scope' to better handle cost ...
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Boris Johnson is going to make the NHS into "a blockbuster health care system in the age of Netflix" and no we don't know what that means either.
Journalist Adam Bienkov reported that the PM's spokesman made the remarks but didn't exactly extrapolate on them.
Meanwhile health secretary Sajid Javid reportedly made the comparison during this morning's cabinet meeting, and warned it was “no longer simply an option to stick to the status quo”, hinting at changes in areas including the use of technology and data to help frontline workers.
And when asked what he meant by the Blockbuster comment, Huffington Post reports that the spokesman said: “I think he was effectively making the point that some of the structures and systems within the healthcare system were designed for a different age and they’ve not been suitably updated over the years, and that coming out of the pandemic, it was no longer an option effectively to stick with the status quo.”
Yup, we are as lost as you are.
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People were very confused by the statement and some questioned whether the Blockbuster reference was on purpose, since the video rental company went (Block)bust in 2014:
\u201cNetflix literally killed Blockbuster.\u201d— Tom Goodwyn (@Tom Goodwyn) 1654601836
\u201cIs he talking about the video rental shop Blockbuster?\u201d— Paul_Cornell (@Paul_Cornell) 1654609191
\u201cIn my teens, I used to work for Blockbuster. They went out of business because they were outdated.\u201d— getnorthern - \u201ca discrace to Britain\u201d - \u201cshitbag\u201d (@getnorthern - \u201ca discrace to Britain\u201d - \u201cshitbag\u201d) 1654601778
Others joked about what an NHS Netflix hybrid would look like, and questioned whether it would be any good:
\u201cPerhaps not the right idea to relate it to Netflix considering how well Netflix is doing with subscribers right now.\u201d— Scott Bryan (@Scott Bryan) 1654604943
\u201c"Hello, welcome to the NHS. What would you like to be healed?"\n"Surprise Me!"\u201d— Greg Jenner (@Greg Jenner) 1654608325
\u201cVery funny how this government keeps using Netflix as it\u2019s barometer of a successful company our state run companies should be emulating, despite everyone hating it for its complete lack of ideas, and it actively tanking in the market due to its ridiculous prices\u201d— Tom Usher (@Tom Usher) 1654603181
\u201c@AdamBienkov Limited choice of good things mixed with lots of stuff that nobody wants?\u201d— Adam Bienkov (@Adam Bienkov) 1654599948
\u201ccatch me on pirate bay getting a colonoscopy\u201d— craig reynolds (@craig reynolds) 1654603789
And others were just left scratching their heads wondering what it all meant:
\u201cwhat the actual fuck does that mean\u201d— Bandger (@Bandger) 1654601956
\u201cThis is the problem with Johnson saying he now wants to "get on with the job". There is no "job". He has no clue what he wants to do with power other than hold on to it.\u201d— Jeremy Cliffe (@Jeremy Cliffe) 1654603528
\u201cI have no idea what this means, except (and I'm sure I'm not the first to point this out) it's worth noting that 'in the age of Netflix' Blockbuster became, well, obsolete.\u201d— S J Watson (@S J Watson) 1654607278
Later Bienkov added:
\u201cTo be clear Downing Street say the point of the analogy was the NHS is like Blockbuster (the defunct video rental chain) and the Health Secretary wants to bring it into the Netflix age rather than they want it to be a blockbuster.\u201d— Adam Bienkov (@Adam Bienkov) 1654599948
Just another baffling day in Tory Britain.
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