Interview by Andy Cowper, editor, Health Policy Insight

Michael Sobanja occupies exactly the position he wants to in NHS Alliance. It’s just not an easy position to define. In musical terms, he’d be the drummer of the band: nailing down the beat of the tunes to hold together the front-stage heroics of lead vocalist Michael Dixon and lead guitarist David Jenner.

Governments get tired and stale. The media and the electorate grow used to their tricks. They are the focus of blame for those who like to blame the government: so much easier than blaming oneself.

Lo! The Care Quality Commission has spoken on quality. Look upon their works, ye 47 underachieving trusts, and despair.

by Andy Cowper, editor, Health Policy Insight

Sir Denys Lasdun died in 2001. I have no idea if health policy affected his death, but it is a shame that he cannot post mortem be tried retrospectively (as MPs are currently being, for their dodgy expenses claims) on the grounds of crimes against architecture.

Lasdun is the man who blessed Londoners with the naughty twin sisters of the National Theatre and IBM buildings, knackering the South Bank river frontage for decades to come. He also built this shocker for the RCP.

Last week, the second Wellards annual conference - ‘Looking ahead to 2010/11: healthcare beyond the next general election’ - was held in London (declaration of interest - I do some work for Wellards, including writing and marketing / PR support).

A few strong statements were made, and I've themed a few quotes together below here to give you a taste. My full write-up can be found here, in our features section.

On the need for NHS cost-cutting and savings:

Private Eye is one of the most free bits of the free press. Regular readers of that esteemed organ will have had little difficulty decoding the article on today’s Guardian about the latest work of Carter-Ruck solicitors.

“The NHS is safe with us” was the infamous line of Margaret Thatcher’s, in response to the leaking of a Cabinet discussion paper proposing a private health insurance system for the UK, to break up the NHS.

Many people did not quite believe Mrs Thatcher’s line, even though the NHS saw real growth in spending every year (if not always above inflation, and far behind the levels of comparably wealthy countries).

There is an intriguing story on The Guardian website about antitrust proceedings by the EU against certain pharma companies, on the back of previous reports about generic gerrymandering.

Markets and healthcare are a combustible mixture.

I wanted to wait until shadow chancellor George Osborne had spoken before writing anything about Andrew Lansley’s speech to the Conservative Party conference in Manchester yesterday.

There is a lovely old Lancashire phrase that I learned at my Gran's knee - 'don't piss on your own front doorstep'. Not one to over-use, but it is a classic, I think you'll agree.