The least wealthy of the richest 85 is worth $11bn. $25million is less than 0.25% of their wealth and considerably less than that for the wealthiest. It'll make no difference to them but will save the lives of countless people.

One in twenty adults in this country is affected by thyroid disease. Women with hypothyroidism outnumber men by ten to one. Symptoms include anxiety and depression, cardiological problems, hair loss, lack of libido, physical pain, exhaustion, hypertension, high cholesterol and weight gain. Some GPs also tell patients that diabetes is an inevitable long term consequence. The NHS diagnosis and management of the condition is usually through one blood test which measures thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH). The lower the thyroid hormones in the pituitary gland, the more TSH the pituitary secretes. For decades now, this condition has been treated almost exclusively with Levothyroxine, a synthetic form of one thyroid hormone: T4. For most patients, T4 in the Levothyroxine converts to T3, which is then used by the body for energy. However, for a large proportion of hypothyroidism patients, this treatment either stops working or never quite starts. Even though these people’s TSH readings might fall into the ‘normal’ range (which, depending on your GP, can be anywhere between under 5 and under 10) their symptoms soon return and worsen over time. They are then told it’s ‘all in their mind’ or due to their lifestyle, and they receive no further help to cope with an ever-decreasing quality of life. Some may, in the meantime, be prescribed anti-depressants or be diagnosed with Fibromyalgia or CFS. Others develop heart conditions, particularly atrial fibrillation, which can occur both through under and over medication: this highlights the need for a more nuanced approach to their thyroid blood tests. Most, at any rate, simply have to deal with their condition(s) on their own with very limited help from the NHS. Much success has been achieved through some enlightened NHS endocrinologists or privately, however, using a combination of levothyroxine and liothyronine (T3) or natural desiccated thyroid, the old standard treatment before Levothyroxine. There is a growing trend amongst patients to feel the need to take their treatment into their own hands, including more extensive blood tests to show the real extent of their thyroid’s condition and activity, and thereby more accurately gauge the effectiveness of medication. This does, however, mostly have to happen privately due to the limited guidelines of the NHS. This means that, apart from the individual expense, monitoring of the treatment and condition is not regulated and information/research is not being gathered by the extensive NHS network to improve its understanding and treatment of hypothyroidism. We call on you to reconsider the NHS's adherence to the TSH reading as the principal guideline for diagnosing and monitoring hypothyroidism, to take patients’ symptoms more into consideration and to routinely use a full panel of FT4, FT3 and TSH blood tests for anyone still displaying symptoms of under-active thyroid, particularly when on thyroid hormone treatment. We also call on the NHS to make the combined medication of T3 – liothyronine – with Levothyroxine much more easily available to patients whose symptoms do not sufficiently improve on T4 alone. Considering the amount of work days lost and lack of quality of life for such a large number of tax payers, it is in the country’s interest that these patients should get more help. Their symptoms of exhaustion, physical pain, depression and anxiety, along with the increased tendency to develop cardiac disease and diabetes, should not be dismissed as just another malaise of middle age when there is a growing body of evidence to the contrary from people who have managed to treat themselves back to a level of health and vitality that they, and their GPs, thought they had lost for ever.

When you become a doctor or nurse, you sign the hipocratic oath, to serve and protect the poor and vulnerable, and not to exploit them or abuse your medical 'training' (is they had any), to cause pain and distress to the vulnerable! As these Department of Work and Pensions 'doctors and nurses'. have driven hundreds of thousands, to total despair, destitution, starvation, even having to beg for food at Food Banks, and driving some (hundreds), to suicide, I demand that these medical personnel be struck off and expelled from the BMA and Medical Register for the suffering that THEY HAVE caused! These people can also be held accountable, under sections 2 & 4, of the Convention for the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide!

We are a growing group of families in North Bristol who want our children to grow up as fit, healthy and confident cyclists. At present there are very few opportunities for safe traffic-free cycling in this area; currently we need to load bikes on to cars and drive to places such as Festival Way or Ashton Court. Cycling on the Downs is forbidden due to a bylaw which was made in 1861. The Downs Committee (7 Merchant Venturers and 7 Councillors) has permitted a short stretch of cycle path near the Water Tower. Apart from that, this uniquely beautiful and flat parkland can only be explored on foot or via the road. Temporary closures of Circular Road on the Downs would create a brilliant car-free loop of over 3km, which children of all ages and cycling abilities could enjoy. It would also open up the Downs to people with disabilities who don’t feel safe cycling on the road alongside cars. Our campaign has support from Sustrans, The Bristol Cycling Campaign, CTC Bristol, LifeCycle, Travel West, Bikeability and Bristol Public Health. We want you to help us show the Downs Committee that there are many, many people who feel that the Downs should be a place where children can enjoy cycling in safety. By signing this petition and pledging to join our rides during Bristol Green Capital 2015, you will help to convince the committee that children should indeed have the freedom to ride on the Downs, and that this can be arranged in a way that accommodates the interests of all users of the Downs.

It's unfair and contrary to Allotment legislation. It breaches an agreement that governs prices in Edinburgh. It will make allotments unaffordable. It is prejudicial against the poor, disabled and elderly. It would make Edinburgh allotments the most expensive in the UK. It is contrary to healthy living policies of Council and Government.

On November 21, MPs will vote on a Private Member’s Bill aimed at halting the spread of privatisation across the NHS. Clive Efford’s Bill would scrap the worst parts of the Government’s Health and Social Care Act of 2012. The 2012 Act unleashed privatisation by imposing competition law on the NHS and exposing services to bids from private companies. Clive Efford’s Bill would rein in privatisation by • Removing competition requirements and regulations • Preventing the NHS watchdog Monitor acting as a competition enforcer • Restoring the Secretary of State’s duty to provide National Health Services • Shrinking what NHS hospitals are allowed to earn from private patients – currently up to half their total income! This petition has been launched by Stockport NHS Watch. We will deliver it to all four of Stockport’s MPs and lobby them to stand up for the NHS on November 21. We cannot stand and watch the NHS being stolen from us!

The Ebola outbreak is worsening by the day. So far close to 4 thousand people have died in West Africa and single victims of the disease have already appeared in US, Europe and Australia. The buildup of response from politicians and international community appears to be slow and painfully inadequate. The ideas like screening travelling public at airports is NOT GOING TO WORK! There is, however, experimental drug, which offers some hope of cure - ZMapp, unfortunately all available doses have already been used and manufacturing of new doses is slow and too low to make the difference to already affected areas. Surely, now is the time to put pressure on the Manufacturer to share the science with ALL capable pharmaceutical companies all over the world to take up the production immediately in parallel with each other. There are obviously questions of patents and protection of profits ect. but even at this stage the containment of this crisis is going to cost global community, potentially billions of dollars, so the financial solution can be found. The decision of this importance can only be taken at the highest levels of power and in conjunction with American partners, since the manufacturer is an American company. Please support this call to the UK PM, to take necessary steps to make this happen!

The Shape of Training is a review of medical training being implemented by the government and its recommendations pose a serious threat to patient safety and high quality patient care by reducing the amount of time take to train hospital consultants. Evidence also suggests that the government may have influenced the review in a non-transparent manner. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-31048279 The review's key recommendations include reducing the time taken to train to become a 'consultant' by at least 2 years and changing the point at which doctors become fully registered to practice by the GMC. The major professional bodies including the Royal College of Physicians, the Royal College of Surgeons and the British Medical Association have expressed serious concerns about these recommendations. Tom Dolphin of the BMA was involved in the review and has recently spoken out against its recommendations: " This is an egregious assault at the heart of medical standards; we cannot allow it to proceed. " The Shape of Training review in its current form is not compatible with high quality patient care and maintaining patient safety in the NHS to a high standard, and for this reason I would urge you to sign this petition.

We are facing pay freezes and poor working conditions and the NMC keep increasing our registration fees. The purpose of the NMC is to protect the public. But no-one is protecting us from the extortionate increases the NMC apply each year.

Local residents and neighbourhood businesses DO NOT WANT the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Planning and Development Control Committee to approve the Reserved Matters Application Ref 2014/03232/DET due soon, before a full independent public health impact assessment is carried out. If any demolition and reconstruction of this HUGE 77-acre West London district is to go ahead, the site and its neighbouring areas will suffer ground contamination, noise pollution (heavy demolition traffic + the accumulative impact of noise), vibration and risks to health during asbestos removal. Furthermore, air pollution in this area, already regularly breaching European air quality standards, make air quality monitoring stations for Hammersmith and Fulham residents essential.

We know there are thousands of dementia [and other disease sufferers] in need of nursing, not just personal care. If they manage to find out about the processes and arm themselves with a copy of the DST they are in with half a chance but it is only half a chance. Result = pay through the nose for care which the patient has already paid into the NHS and tax system for them to provide

Nurse are not paid enough as it is, and their pay rises are pitifully small. Yet the annual registration fee is set for a 20% rise.