Marching for the NHS

Around 3,500 people marched through Leeds this weekend in a lively and vibrant Yorkshire regional demonstration to fund our NHS, writes Marc Renwick from Leeds Left Unity.

Banners and placards from trade unions, political groups and community organisations filled the streets of the city centre in a call to the government to stop the underfunding of the NHS. Current funding arrangements will see a £22 billion cut in real terms to the NHS budget at a time when austerity is seeing a huge increase in demand for healthcare and threats of further privatisation continue.

There was also a big delegation from the Huddersfield and Calderdale campaign to protect their A&E department that is threatened with closure.

Speakers from a wide range of campaigns and organisations spoke about the need to defend our health service. Salsa bands and Brass bands entertained the demonstrators and the Saturday afternoon Leeds shoppers.

Leeds Keep our NHS Public have organised demonstrations in Leeds and Yorkshire defending the NHS on an annual basis since the passing of the Health and Social Bill in 2012 and today’s protest was the biggest so far.

Nick Jones from Leeds Keep our NHS Public said “this is one of the most vibrant and colourful protests in Leeds for years….people came from across the region: Doncaster, Lincoln, Barnsley, Sheffield, Wakefield and Huddersfield etc and they showed the depth of feeling to defend our NHS and a commitment to have a fun time defending it too”.

2 April 2017

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