NHS staff join demonstration against Andrew Lansley’s health bill

Published: 20th May, 2011
by TOM FOOT and JOSH LOEB

THOUSANDS of marchers, including many NHS staff, brought central London to a standstill as they defied government proposals to inflict major surgery on the NHS.

Chants of “Kill the Bill – it will make you really ill” filled the air during Tuesday’s protest, which began with speeches outside UCLH in Euston Road and snaked through Westminster, past tourists and applauding shopkeepers, ending outside the office of health secretary Andrew Lansley in Whitehall.

Fake blood was spattered outside the Department of Health and health workers bathed their hands in the red pools.

The protest had spiralled into a nationwide demonstration after the  government called a “pause” in driving through its Health and Social Care Bill.

Westminster Keep Our NHS Public campaigner Chris Bambery, who was on the march, said: “This is about the privatisation of our NHS. The rot has got to stop. The whole emphasis on financial control for GPs is a step towards privatisation. To see what a disaster privatisation of health services is you only have to look at the USA where half the people can’t get treatment because they can’t afford health insurance.”

Former health secretary, Holborn and St Pancras MP Frank Dobson, said: “We’ve got one big thing on our side: the people of this country. The NHS is the most popular institution in the country. People like the idea that it looks after them and their families – but also that it looks after the whole country.”

He added: “When the Tories start attacking everybody, they are in trouble, even when the Lib Dems have provided a sort of human shield.”

Hundreds of staff in local hospitals are being axed and many more NHS managers have also lost their jobs in anticipation of changes that would hand control of the NHS to groups of GPs.

A second day of protest is planned for June 30.

Bill – Proposed changes explained

• What is the Bill?
The Health and Social Care Bill is proposed by Conservative Health Secretary Andrew Lansley and is a central plank in government reforms to shake up the NHS. The government believes the NHS must be dramatically altered because it is wasting too much money. 

• So why are people marching against it? 
The most contentious issue in the bill is the proposal to abolish primary care trusts and give GPs the power to decide what gets funded on the NHS. The government has said it wants them to buy services from “any willing provider”. Critics believe this system will lead to a profit bonanza for private companies competing for work, lead to more unaccountable decision-making and eventually break up the NHS for good.

• When will the bill be heard? 
It was first introduced into Parliament on January 19 and has completed its committee stage. The bill was passed by 321 MPs against 235 at second reading. But the government decided on a “pause” in the process last month while the bill was reassessed for amendments following protests. It is expected to return for a “report stage” in the Commons in July.

• Who is in favour of the bill?
Support for the bill is hard to find. The Royal College of GPs has criticised the plans, as has the British Medical Association doctors’ union. The NHS Confederation – representing all NHS providers and commissioners – has also opposed the plans. Lib Dems have called for amendments and sections of the Labour Party have called for a complete halt.