In 2012, the Tory-LibDems Coalition ‘privatised’ the NHS through the Health and Social Care Act. This legislation was opposed by the Labour Party, but voted through by the Tory and LibDems Members of Parliament. This act effectively abolished the Socialist principle of comprehensive healthcare delivered free at the point of use to everyone (collectively paid for through taxation). All safeguards that ensured that GPs and hospital administration adhered to the Socialist principle were removed and the pathway was cleared for private healthcare firms to purchase large parts of the NHS and transition it to a dramatically reduced, cynical and dangerous ‘paid for’ medical service. The Tories have been pursuing this policy of privatising the NHS whilst denying the reality of their actions. This deceptive Tory procedure has been described as ‘privatisation through stealth’. As GPs refuse to diagnose illnesses, and hospital provision diminishes, people are dying in their thousands across the UK due to medical neglect. Today, the Communist Party of Britain (CPB) and the Young Communist League (YCL) joined tens of thousands around the UK in Marching to ‘Save the NHS’. The NHS was created in 1948 by the Labour Government and was premised upon the ‘free’ medical system established by Lenin in the Soviet Union. My family marched through London with many Comrades – including Dr Martin Graham – the Branch Secretary of the Croydon Branch. He and I discussed a remarkable array of subjects as the rain poured and the Red Flags fluttered in the cold wind. Mei-An – who is now 5 years old, has been marching since about 7 months old – but today she carried a Red Flag of her own and marched the entire route for the first time! We must fight for the NHS and all the people who rely upon it for survival now and in the future!
