THINK...AND VOTE FOR THE NHS

VOTE FOR THE NHS

Cuts will damage your health

BRUTAL CUTS

HOSPITALS YES – HEALTH CUTS NO

NHS campaigners from Save Our Hospitals and from Ealing Save Our NHS held a lively lunchtime rally in Lyric Square Hammersmith on Saturday May 4^th to celebrate the saving of Charing Cross and Ealing Hospitals as major acute hospitals.

However, speakers at the rally who, in addition to campaigners from Hammersmith and Ealing included MP Andy Slaughter and Steve Cowan leader of H&F Council, condemned the scandalous plans by H&F health bosses to cut more than £30m in this financial year from the local health budget.

Initially people in the borough are facing cuts to dementia services, stroke provision, cardiology services, dermatology services and gynaecology services in the community. It is also proposed that financial savings will be made by cutting back night hours from Hammersmith Hospital Urgent Care Centre and by cutting medical hubs from the current three to 2 or even 1. And, on top of all this, GP after hours funding is being cut. The rally condemned these cuts as entirely unacceptable attacks on health provision.

Mention was also made of the digital service, Babylon GP at Hand which campaigners have just learned is taking out more than £20m and rising from local health budgets, thus undermining GP and other health services in the borough.

On a bright afternoon passers-by listened to speakers, took leaflets, signed petitions and engaged with campaigners. In particular passers-by enjoyed campaigners singing and a lively improvised communal dance. The high point was a die-in staged by SOH campaigners – many bloody and bandaged - demonstrating the damaging effects to our health were these cuts to go ahead.

WORKING TOGETHER WE CAN DEFEND OUR NHS

WE'VE WON

Today in parliament (26/03/2019) the Secretary of Health Matt Hancock announced that the closure plans for both Charing Cross and Ealing hospitals contained in the cuts & closures plan known as Shaping A Healthier Future have been withdrawn  We've won. Its not been easy taking on a well funded posse of spin doctors, management consultants and political ideologues but many thousands of people have done just that and after a 7 year fight we've stopped a closure plan that was downright dangerous. Everyone has done their bit whether that's signing petitions, challenging bureaucrats in meetings, running street stalls , demonstrating, fundraising or delivering & displaying posters. Tonight we should feel really proud of ourselves and celebrate our collective achievement.

Of course there are still huge problems: The £30m primary & community cuts planned for H&F, the state of disrepair in our hospitals, on going understaffing & under resourcing coupled with the threat of privatisation by the likes of Babylon and Virgin. Some may have seen the laughable attempts of local conservative MPs and councillors to claim responsibility for a victory they have consistently done their best to sabotage  It's also true that the government could change it's mind and come back with new closure plans in the future.

So we'll have to keep campaigning - we've proven today that campaigning works. But for tonight let's just celebrate a victory won by lots of different people (including you) working together to Save Charing Cross Hospital.

Kind Regards AD(SOH chair)

https://www.parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/08822533-8e7f-4b91-bbee-21407e5445e0.

Ealing and Charing Cross A&E closure plans scrapped - BBC News
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-47708750