Act opens door for NHS's abolition, warn experts

April 1 sees the latest round of legislation in the government's Health and Social Care Act kicking in.

The new act hearalds clinical commissioning groups, which will begin ordering health services from private providers.

Saturday's meeting, which included doctors and other health professionals, was organised to unite groups fighting to defend the NHS and was one of many similar events taking place across Britain.

GP Dr David Wrigley from Carnforth in Lancashire related horror stories from the United States.

"In the US 50 million people go bankrupt each year because they can't pay their health bills," he said.

"The government is creating US-style health treatment.

"It is depriving the NHS of funding so it can say the service is not working and will have to be privatised."

Karen Reissman, who is involved in a campaign to save the threatened accident and emergency unit in Bolton, said that staff recruitment was almost non-existent.

"In Bolton 500 redundancies are being declared.

"Amazingly they are arguing that 500 redundancies will have no effect on patient care, even though it is more than 10 per cent of the staff."

Health Emergency director John Lister added: "We need a united movement to defend the NHS.

"On April 1 the NHS will be abolished as we know it."