West Mids march builds links

NHS Feature

West Mids march builds links

THEY CAME from all around the West Midlands as 150 people marched and
rallied in Birmingham on 15 July. The march was organised by
Staffordshire NHS SOS and the Socialist Party and 45 people came to the
Socialist Party meeting afterwards to discuss linking campaigns
regionally and nationally.

A contingent came from Nuneaton, where 700 people turned up last week
at a Primary Care Trust consultation meeting proposing to close the
town’s special baby care unit. Workers came from the National Blood
Service in Birmingham, which faces closure with the loss of 30 jobs.

Stone MSers from Staffordshire, a group of people with multiple
sclerosis who campaign against the postcode lottery that denies them
drugs to alleviate MS, were noisy and enthusiastic. There were
campaigners from Worcestershire Keep Our Health Service Public campaign
as well as NHS SOS.

Dr Jackie Grunsell, the Huddersfield Save Our Health Service campaign
councillor spoke at the rally and the meeting. Jackie and Coventry
Socialist Party councillor Dave Nellist both spoke about the urgency of
the campaign as attacks on the NHS deepen.

The NHS, Western Europe’s most ‘reformed’ and market-oriented
health service, is increasingly becoming a brand name buying in services
from private companies. Labour say that they cannot give the NHS £600
million to pay off its deficits, but they agreed to give British Energy
£5.1 billion in subsidies to balance its books.

Neil Stote, from Keep Our Health Service Public, said that the unions
needed to support their workers. Andy Ford, an Amicus steward from the
Blood Service said UNISON regional office had told their members not to
come on the march because it was organised by the sort of people "we
cannot be associated with."

The meeting agreed that the unions should urgently call a national
demonstration to defend the NHS. They should be protecting their
members’ jobs rather than saving New Labour’s face! Meanwhile the
campaigns would network with each other, sharing information and ideas.