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  3. The NHS remains one of the reasons why people are proud to be British. It provides outstanding care to more than a million of us

The NHS remains one of the reasons why people are proud to be British. It provides outstanding care to more than a million of us

admin2022-04-20  81
问题     The NHS remains one of the reasons why people are proud to be British. It provides outstanding care to more than a million of us every day, despite huge pressure caused by tight finances and an ageing population. At the last election, the British people were clear—a strong NHS needs a strong economy. So those who back Brexit need to explain what that would mean for the NHS.
    I am not someone who believes we could not survive economically outside the EU. Nor do I believe that—as the world’s fifth largest economy—we would not eventually negotiate new trade deals. But we know that would involve years of economic uncertainty and that no country outside the EU has ever secured full, unfettered access to the single market.
    Even the most bullish Brexiteers concede that the short-term impact on the British economy would be a period of uncertainty and volatility. The independent Office for Budget Responsibility has said that "there appears to be a greater consensus that a vote to leave would result in a period of potentially disruptive uncertainty while the precise details of the UK’s new relationship with the EU were negotiated". And therein lies the risk to the NHS of leaving.
    Those wishing to leave might say this uncertainty is a price worth paying, but my concern is more practical. The NHS consumes the second biggest budget in Whitehall. Next year, thanks to this government’s success in turning around the economy, it will have the sixth biggest increase in its history.
    Investing in the NHS will always be a priority for this government, but the simple fact is this: an economic shock would put pressure on our finances. According to the OECD, Greece, Portugal, Spain and Italy all cut health spending per head following the economic crisis.
    Of course, our economy is stronger and more resilient, but only in the last two weeks a series of studies from the likes of the London School of Economics, Oxford Economics and the CBI have shown that the impact of an exit could cost the UK more than 5% of the size of our economy.
    This would inevitably mean less money for public services like the NHS. Those who want to leave need to explain how they could protect the NHS from this economic shock.
    It is not just a question of the risk to the pounds in our pocket, but to the pounds in the NHS budget as well. We should not take that risk.
The word "bullish"(Para. 3) is closest in meaning to________.
选项 A、aggressive
B、feverish
C、reserved
D、optimistic
答案D
解析 本题是词汇题。根据题干定位至第三段。画线词修饰后面的Brexiteers(支持英国脱欧的人)。该词所在句意为“即便是最……的支持脱欧的人也承认，英国经济短期内会充满变数”，而本文作者的观点与这些支持者相悖，作者持有的是慎重的态度，认为脱欧会影响英国经济，充满不确定性，从而影响了国民医疗保健体系。结合备选项可知，答案选D项“乐观的”。从构词方式上来看，bullish的词根为bull(牛，公牛)，后缀为-ish，也可推测其含义为“牛脾气的；看涨的；乐观的”。A项“进取的”通常用来形容一种精神或行为，而非态度，故排除；B项“极度狂热的”，表述过于极端，故排除；C项“矜持的”可以看作是作者的态度，而非支持脱欧者的态度，故排除。
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