THERE are many things that we used to take for granted but no longer can. Countless excuses are thrown up for declining standards in public life, but there is only one real reason greed.

The politicians know we will elect the party that, for some unaccountable reason, we believe will deliver more but tax less. And if the chips are down, we will unashamedly plump for the lower taxes, whatever they're promising.

But, good service costs money. We have dirty hospitals, inefficient transport, failing schools, thug dominated streets and pensioners living on the edge of poverty. All because politicians want to be elected and know the electorate are eager to be convinced that things can improve without cost to us. And what we want more than anything is to take our cash down to the hyper-supermarket and stagger out with digital satellite tellies, a car with the latest registration number, ludicrously expensive trainers made by children in the Third World and mobile phones that you can e-mail Peru on while playing computer games.

Because the political parties know that, they can't risk striking out for the dangerous terrain of the higher moral ground, in case the other lot don't. People with principles and convictions (of the philosophical rather than criminal variety) used to be motivated to stand for Parliament for altruistic reasons. Now it is seen as a good career move in the 'famous for five minutes' era and attracts those who, quite simply, like high office. I acknowledge there are honourable exceptions in all parties.

This results in hospitals that are so strapped for cash that they pick amongst the carrion of privatisation in order to save money on cleaning. When matron was in charge, cleaners were employed by the hospital and she would, by meticulous supervision and a rod of iron, ensure the place was spotless and hygienic. Now we have countless layers of administration and accountants running the asylum, cleaning is contracted out to the lowest bidder, who having gained the contract then pays the lowest wages in order to make the figures work. Underpaid, demoralised staff then drag brooms listlessly around gazing into space and frankly who can blame them?

If the staff received a decent wage for the arduous and crucial task of cleaning and were employed directly by the hospital under the supervison of senior nursing staff, then the so-called superbugs would be frogmarched out in a tide of disinfectant.

5,000 people a year die of infections caught while in hospital and £1 billion a year is spent treating such illnesses.

The Hippocratic oath, sworn by doctors on entering the profession, commences with the wise words "First, do no harm....."

It would be hard to blame the medical profession for these deaths, despite the media battering that profession is currently receiving for a variety of reasons.

Bureaucratic dogma and the requirement to contract out to the lowest bidder is the principal cause of dirty hospitals.

Sack a whole swathe of pen-pushers and computer-tappers, bring back matron and hire an army of bacteria bashers with the money that's saved on the writers of policies, reports and internal memoranda.

Bring back common sense!