Southampton Keep Our NHS Public (KONP) is taking part in a nationwide Day of Action for the NHS on Wedneday, July 5th from noon to 2pm in Southampton city centre.
There will be a street stall and organisers will be handing out postcards and other materials, outside the Waterstones entrance to Westquay
There will also be an NHS 75 online rally from 6.30pm to 8pm in the evening.
One of the organisers, Helen Field, said: “We are taking part in a nationwide day of action organised by KONP and We Own It. We are very worried that the NHS will soon become an insurance based health service. We are completely opposed to this. One reason is there is no place for private companies in running a health service. It’s actually cheaper to fund the service through taxation. The US is a prime example of how private health car fails huge numbers.
“We are most concerned about the lack of staff in the NHS, leading to intolerable conditions for staff, leading to even more going. 120,000 vacancies (at least) for doctors, nurses, midwives, dentists, radiographers and many more. No wonder the waiting list for treatments is growing. Even the government recognises this huge shortage. They just refuse to address it properly.
“So, we have billions spent on agency staff when we should be employing those staff directly. £2 billion a year goes on interest to service PFI contracts from the last 2 decades. Hospital buildings in a dilapidated condition in urgent need of repair.”
For more information about the Southampton event, visit the Facebook page. To register for the online event, click here.
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