NHS: UK Now Has One of the Worst Healthcare Systems in the Developed World, According to OECD Report

THE INDEPENDENT: Hospitals so underequipped that people are dying needlessly because of a chronic lack of investment

The UK has one of the worst healthcare systems in the developed world according to a damning new report which said the nation has an “outstandingly poor” record of preventing ill health.

Hospitals are now so short-staffed and underequipped that people are also dying needlessly because of a chronic lack of investment. The verdict, from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), will make embarrassing reading for David Cameron who denied the cash-strapped NHS is heading for its worst winter crisis. » | Paul Gallagher | Wednesday, November 4, 2015

OECD Engages in Crap Talk! Britons Happier Than Before Financial Crisis as Contentment Plummets in Europe – OECD

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: OECD says quality of life in the UK has been only “modestly affected” by the global financial crisis with happiness and even trust in government rising – in marked contrast with its neighbours in the Eurozone

British people have emerged from global financial crisis happier than before in stark contrast with their counterparts in most other European countries, a major international study shows.

Levels of general satisfaction with life have also edged upwards in the UK, bucking the trend in much of the rest of the developed world, a study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) found.

Even trust in government, which has tumbled in many Eurozone countries in particular in the last five years, has risen in the UK over the same period.

Although the recession sent unemployment rising and put a squeeze on living standards in Britain as elsewhere, the drop in national morale seen in other countries is simply “not visible” in the UK, according to the OECD. » | John Bingham, Social Affairs Editor | Tuesday, November 05, 2013

Israel Admitted to the OECD
THE TELEGRAPH: Israel has won a rare victory on the international diplomatic stage, gaining acceptance in an exclusive club of prosperous economies after a 16-year effort to join the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development - and in the face of stiff Palestinian opposition.

The Paris-based OECD said it had invited Israel, as well as Estonia and Slovenia, to become members after they met specific criteria as developed, open economies. Once formally invested as members, the three will swell the ranks of the OECD to 34 members, including the United States, a strong backer of Israel's bid.

The new members "will contribute to a more plural and open OECD that is playing an increasingly important role in the global economic architecture," OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria said in a statement.

Just months ago, Mr Gurria expressed concern about high levels of poverty and unemployment, especially among the minority Arab populations, during a visit to Israel.

However, it did not appear to have hampered membership. Mr Gurria said Israel, Estonia and Slovenia had been "receptive to OECD recommendations." >>> | Tuesday, May 11, 2010

OECD Poised to Resume Inquiry into Why the British Government Abandoned Its Investigations Into the Allegations of Corruption in BAE
THE GUARDIAN: Attorney general urged to clarify role in concealing $1bn payments to prince

The government was last night fighting to contain the fallout over £1bn in payments to a Saudi prince as the attorney general came under renewed pressure to explain how much he knew about the affair.

While in public the government was issuing partial denials about its role in the controversy, in private there were desperate efforts to secure a new BAE £20bn arms deal with Saudi Arabia.

And any hopes that the furore could be halted were dashed last night when the Guardian learned that the world's anti-corruption organisation, the OECD, was poised to resume its own inquiry into why the British government suddenly abandoned its investigations into the £43bn al-Yamamah arms deal. The Bandar cover-up: who knew what, and when? (more) By David Leigh and Rob Evans

THE GUARDIAN:
BAE files: Shah of Iran

Prince used cash in BAE-linked account for palace: Former Saudi ambassador says $17m withdrawal was for legitimate expense

Mark Alexander