Wow! What a response!!

Patsy,

The speed of your response is breathtaking. Thank you.

Thank you for the names I requested as examples of very bestest practice. I'm ashamed to admit that I thought you might find it a little difficult to find a name but so many?? That's truly impressive stuff. I've already had a preliminary chat with most of them and will update you further once I 've had the chance to absorb the 28-carat nuggets that were forthcoming. However, these are my first impressions:

John Prescott was really helpful (I think). It was a little difficult to find him at first. I wasn't sure which car he was in and to which of his government-provided houses he was being driven but I am nothing if not persistent and, like the mounties, got my man. He had much to say. I must confess that I did lose the thread occasionally but this is only to be expected when dealing with a man who runs much of the country when TB is away (which seems to be rather a lot these days). (Off the record, he really is worth more than the £150,000 a year plus expenses plus cars plus offices plus staff plus pension etc. A bargain if you ask me). Lord Prescott will only add lustre to the upper house (should he need a third).

Next came John Reid. I really struck gold here since he was able to arrange a "four-way" teleconference between the two of us AND Charles Clarke and David Blunkett. This I was able to get the collective wisdom of all the players who had delivered a Home Office which frankly is an example to us all. It also completely clarified what is meant by "fitness for purpose". Gosh, don't we have a long way to go?

Perhaps the most difficult interview was with Frank Dobson who as your predecessor in 1997 can take all the credit for demolishing those appalling Tory gimmicks such as internal markets, devolved budgets, etc etc. It is still a puzzle to see why he came a bad third to Ken Livingstone and Steve Norris in the London mayoral elections. Clearly it has left its mark. Still he did have some words of praise for the Treasury who have always been so supportive of his efforts.

I've left a message for Ruth Kelly at Education but she's not taking calls. I don't have a number for Margaret Hodge so all-in-all Education is a proving a tad tricky.

Steven Byers suggested floating our surgery on the stock market and then cancelling the shares but was a little vague on detail. David Miliband at Defra suggested I could learn a thing or two about making every penny count by looking at his department's work on the common agricultural policy.

I've left the best until last. Our beloved London Mayor was unsparing in his help and was generous in providing me with a text-book study on spending £800+ millions that wasn't in his budget on buses that now run every ten seconds in packs of five meanwhile taxing the overpaid bourgeoisie swanning around London in their 4x4 tanks to pay for it. Surely there is no better example on how to soak those rich GP bastards. You can rely on Ken.

I am so totally energised by your timely response. You have only increased my determination to prove that we in the health service can do just as well as our beloved leader has done for the people of Iraq.

What a team! What results! What an example to us all.

Your greatest fan

p.s. my thanks to my good friend Dick for his input.