Oliver Huitson

Oliver Huitson is a former Co-Editor at openDemocracyUK and a freelance journalist. He contributed chapters to Jenny Manson's 2012 book, 'Public Service on the Brink', and 'NHS SOS' (2013). He has written for The Guardian, The New Statesman, Vice and the BBC. He is on Twitter as @OllyHuitson

PCT's technical support provider goes into administration

The firm believed to provide the majority of technical support to London's PCTs, 2e2, is going into administration. Markets rely on failure. But for health services "failure" can be literally fatal.

By Oliver Huitson

/ 2 Feb 2013

Introducing our new section - OurNHS

This week we have launched OurNHS, a brand new section of openDemocracy dedicated to England's National Health Service (NHS). The Coalition's Health & Social Care Act 2012 formally ends the NHS as a free and comprehensive health service. OurNHS will be campaigning for its restoration. This introdu

By Oliver Huitson

/ 1 Feb 2013

We're heading to dark days

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Oliver Huitson listens to Mark Serwotka, General Secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union, talk about the Autumn statement, tax avoidance, Union strategy and the Conservative vision for the nation – where are we headed, decades of

By Oliver Huitson

/ 6 Dec 2012

Devalue or Else - a new OurKingdom debate on the British currency

With a troubled future ahead for the UK, could devaluation hold the key to a more balanced and productive economy? Throwing up a range of political and economic questions beyond the tired dichotomy of austerity vs Keynesian stimulus, the debate will shed fresh light on the UK's economic position a

By Oliver Huitson

/ 29 Oct 2012

How the BBC betrayed the NHS: an exclusive report on two years of censorship and distortion

In the two years building up to the government’s NHS reform bill, the BBC appears to have categorically failed to uphold its remit of impartiality, parroting government spin as uncontested fact, whilst reporting only a narrow, shallow view of opposition to the bill. In addition, key news appears t

By Oliver Huitson

/ 27 Sep 2012

Ed Miliband finds the buzzword, but will it sting?

In his speech at the Policy Network conference Miliband continues to build a strong analysis of Britain's economic predicament but do his proposed solutions go far enough?

By Oliver Huitson

/ 7 Sep 2012

Euro economies must come before Euro debts

Ultimately, the size of debts accrued in the Eurozone has become too large for any credible rescue plan that does not include substantial write-offs far beyond Greece. The idea that Germany can hold together both the currency and the union whilst still protecting a mountain of sovereign and bankin

By Oliver Huitson

/ 19 Jul 2012

The Uneconomics guide to money creation

In it's latest book, "Where does money come from?", the New Economics Foundation provides one of the sharpest accounts of money creation in recent times. Can your high street bank really create money?

By Oliver Huitson

/ 17 Feb 2012

Britain needs a transformative budget

Britain is on the brink of a double-dip recession. She needs to begin the fundamental reshaping of her political economy... and this is where I'd start.

By Oliver Huitson

/ 27 Jan 2012

Time for Tax Transparency in the UK

In the wake of the PAC report on HMRC's failure to tax corporations fairly, what other solutions might there be to bridge Britain's £25bn "tax gap"?

By Oliver Huitson

/ 21 Dec 2011

Plan A has failed - alarming times ahead

Plan A has failed. It’s been replaced by plan A 1.5, with go-faster stripes. The current economic outlook for Britain is deeply alarming but if the Euro falls,

By Oliver Huitson

/ 30 Nov 2011

UK party funding: no cash, no democracy

Proposed reforms to party funding would help to remove 'big money' from British politics. But they won't address the underlying problem: the gulf between Westminster and the public.

By Oliver Huitson

/ 24 Nov 2011