Political party conferences
This story supports 'RCN gears up for political conferences' on page three of RCN Bulletin issue 282, published on 21 September 2011.
The political party conference season offers the RCN a real opportunity to engage with a huge number of politicians from across the spectrum within the space of three hectic weeks, according to the RCN’s Senior Parliamentary Officer Laurence Meehan.
Laurence has been in Birmingham this week at the Liberal Democrats conference where the RCN will be meeting with as many stakeholders as possible during the course of the event.
“RCN Chief Executive Dr Peter Carter is here, and so is our Deputy President Cecilia Anim,” said Laurence. “They’re attending a range of events, including all the debates in the main hall on pensions and NHS reform, and other fringe meetings that cover a wide range of health and social care topics. For example, Dr Carter is speaking at one hosted by Neurological Commissioning Support. NCS works with care commissioners to ensure people with long-term neurological conditions are at the heart of commissioning services.”
During the conference, the RCN delegation will also be meeting with individual Lib Dem MPs and other interested parties.
Laurence said: “Our attendance at the party conferences is always important because it raises the RCN’s profile and ensures that issues important to our members are raised with key MPs. But this year has added significance given the proposed health services reforms and, of course, because of the threat to NHS pensions.”
He added: “We’ll be doing all we can to ensure MPs and other conference delegates are aware of the really significant concerns our members have about these issues.”
At all three main party conferences, the RCN is hosting a fringe with the British Medical Association and the Nuffield Trust which will focus on the difficult decisions facing currently facing the NHS.