Voting for vision

When polling day arrives on May 7, key personal issues such as education, the NHS and the economy will guide individual voters. But what, if any, are the considerations when it comes to finding the best party for the optical profession?

Five years since the last general election, restructuring of the NHS continues to be a popular battleground for the major political parties, while optical practices are directly affected by fluctuations in business rates, taxes and consumer spending – paired with a somewhat frozen GOS sight test fee.

Ann Blackmore, head of policy and strategy at The Federation of Ophthalmic and Dispensing Opticians (FODO) told Optician the likely result of the general election was not one clear big winner, but a winner by a tiny margin or another coalition. Therefore, all was to play for.