38 Degrees

Dear Andy, Urgent: on Friday, MPs vote on a new law that would keep the NHS out of TTIP – the US-EU trade agreement that threatens to lock privatisation into public services. [1] Votes in Westminster on the NHS aren’t usually relevant outside England. This time, it’s different. TTIP could pave the way for sweeping privatisation in our healthcare system across the UK. [2] The government needs to take our NHS off the negotiating table. And Friday is our chance to make sure that happens. Can you sign a petition to your MP asking them to turn up and vote the right way on Friday? MPs aren’t used to being the target of petitions: the last thing they want is hundreds of their constituents banding together. So the bigger this petition is, the more likely your MP is to listen. Click here to tell your MP to vote to keep our NHS out of TTIP on Friday: https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/vote-to-save-our-nhs-bridgend If the vote goes the right way, it would do more than just keep the NHS out of TTIP: it would repeal the worst bits of the Health and Social Care Act. That’s the law that’s been forcing the steady privatisation and break-up of the English health service since 2012. [3] But for 38 Degrees members living outside of England, Friday’s vote is still really important. If we don’t keep our NHS out of TTIP, it’ll be open season for private healthcare companies. It’ll be a hard vote to win. But win or not, politicians need to know that 38 Degrees members haven’t given up or gone away – we’re still here, we still care, and we’ll take every opportunity to protect our health services. Please click here to sign the petition to your MP now, calling on them to turn up in Westminster this Friday and vote to keep our NHS out of TTIP: https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/vote-to-save-our-nhs-bridgend Thanks for being involved, Susannah, Elizabeth, Rachel, Blanche and the 38 Degrees team PS: This Friday’s vote is on a “Private Members’ Bill” – a law proposed by a backbench MP. In this case, it’s proposed by a backbench Labour MP called Clive Efford. That means it will be particularly hard to get enough non-Labour MPs to vote for it! But public pressure has persuaded MPs to break ranks with their own party before, so let’s give it a go. Please sign the petition to your MP now: https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/vote-to-save-our-nhs-bridgend NOTES [1] International Business Times: TTIP: Labour Vows to Push Bill to Protect NHS from Privatisation: http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/ttip-labour-vows-push-bill-protect-nhs-privatisation-1473045 [2] OurNHS: On TTIP and the NHS, they are trying to bamboozle us: https://www.opendemocracy.net/ournhs/john-hilary/on-ttip-and-nhs-they-are-trying-to-bamboozle-us [3] Clive Efford, Labour MP for Eltham, is tabling a Private Member’s Bill for debate in the House of Commons on Friday 21st November. It’s called the National Health Service (Amended Duties and Powers) Bill 2014-15, and it would amend some of the most controversial bits of the Health and Social Care Act 2012 and exempt the NHS from TTIP. Every year, a small number of backbench MPs have the opportunity to introduce their own legislation to Parliament. Their attempted laws are called Private Member’s Bills. If Clive Efford’s Private Member’s Bill passes, it would reverse many of the worst changes to our NHS. Politics.co.uk: Labour backs bill to repeal NHS reforms: http://www.politics.co.uk/news/2014/06/29/labour-backs-bill-to-repeal-nhs-reforms You can see the bill’s passage through Parliament here: http://services.parliament.uk/bills/2014-15/nationalhealthserviceamendeddutiesandpowers.html NHS for sale?: Private providers reports: http://www.nhsforsale.info/private-providers/private_providers02.html NHS for sale?: Contract Alert Report (Apr 2013 -Apr 2014): http://www.nhsforsale.info/privatisation-list/contract-alert/contract-alert-report-april-april.html