FORMER Labour deputy prime minister John Prescott has claimed he was against NHS privatisation when he was in government and that he still is.
In his Sunday Mirror column yesterday, Prescott said: ‘The Tories claimed the NHS is safe in our hands.
‘Now we know they meant safe in the private sector’s hands.
‘It’s true that a number of people were convinced, even in my own party, that competition by private companies would increase efficiency and quality of service.
‘I disagreed with those people – then and now.
‘The profit motive becomes the overall priority – and usually that cost saving is at the expense of the nurses, rehired by the private companies at lower wages and employment conditions.
‘Tragically this is now only too evident with the effective privatisation of the advice line NHS 111.
‘We predicted it would be an accident and emergency waiting to happen. And so it was.’
He concluded: ‘The traditional principle of our NHS treatment, based on need and not the ability to pay, now comes only after the private patients have been given a greater priority.
‘Labour must pledge to remove the market from the NHS and return it to a public service – and not a source of private profit.’
It is far too little, far too late from Prescott. His remarks come as it is rapidly emerging that the combination of PFI debts (initiated by Labour) and Tory-LibDem coalition multi-billion pound NHS cuts have put at least twenty major hospitals at risk of closure.
This is despite last week’s High Court ruling that Health Secretary Hunt acted illegally in announcing the closure of the A&E at Lewisham Hospital in south-east London.
It was claimed that Hunt had targeted Lewisham to recover money lost when a neighbouring south east trust was put into administration with debts of £200m.
Other hospitals in danger include King George Hospital, Goodmayes in Ilford (whose A&E faces closure as a result of the £150m PFI debt of Queen’s Hospital, Romford).
Barts and the Royal London Hospital Trust also has a massive £1bn PFI debt, which is costing the trust £115m a year in interest until 2048.
It is feared this may prompt the trust to axe services at Newham and Whipps Cross Hospitals which joined the trust 18 months ago.
The trade unions must organise action: that is strikes and occupations to keep all these hospitals open and fully functioning.
