Recent revelations about the scale of Government plans to give private companies effective ‘ownership’ of NHS facilities and freedom to recruit NHS staff have caused a furore – and it’s not just traditional Labour voters who are kicking up a stink. Many people, even after 8 years of New Labour government, still instinctively reject private involvement in that most valued of public services – the NHS. Despite the enormous investment into the NHS seen in recent years, there is still a huge drive to involve the private sector in everything from building hospitals to providing staff to delivering services such as mobile CT scanners. Following a leak to a national newspaper, we have evidence of the full extent of the plans – £3 billion, and up to 15% of NHS elective care will be in private hands in the next couple of years. Add to this the plans for primary care, and we have what, from any angle, looks like a semi-private NHS.