Health Secretary Wes Streeting Under Fire for NHS ‘Privatisation by Stealth’
Health Secretary Wes Streeting is slammed by a former ally for silently chopping NHS budgets, sparking fears of creeping privatisation across the country.
£61 Million Slashed at East London Hospitals
Andy Walker, ex-Labour councillor and NHS campaigner, laid into Streeting after Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust (BHRUT) revealed plans to slash £61 million from its budget next year.
These drastic cuts threaten vital services at Queen’s Hospital in Romford and King George Hospital in Ilford—both right in Streeting’s own turf.
Ex-ally Warns of ‘Privatisation by Stealth’
Walker, who once worked alongside Streeting to defend local NHS services, accused the government of sneaky strategy. He called the quiet rollout of cuts a deliberate move to dodge public scrutiny.
“The dominant coalition in this government is big business. Wes Streeting has taken significant donations from people linked to private healthcare. My concern is that we are looking at privatisation by stealth.”
Despite these accusations, Streeting’s office has refused to comment.
Silence from Labour, Outrage from Campaigners
Internal trust documents warn of “very hard decisions” ahead, with chief exec Matthew Trainer admitting some services may get restricted.
Walker slammed local Labour politicians for staying mum, contrasting their silence with past vocal Conservative opposition to service cuts.
“Not one Labour politician has said a single thing against these cuts. I’ll be pushing for a full consultation to expose what services are at risk.”
He fears this slow erosion leads to a postcode lottery, pushing patients into private care instead of public NHS treatment.
Political Donations Raise Eyebrows Over NHS Future
Scrutiny is mounting over Streeting’s political funding. Between 2017-2019, he accepted £40,000 from Peter Hearn, a businessman connected to private healthcare recruitment.
Since then, Streeting has taken nearly £200,000 from two of Hearn’s firms, plus £95,000 from hedge fund boss John Armitage, heavily invested in private health insurers.
All donations are declared legally but critics say these links raise serious doubts about Labour’s NHS vision under Streeting’s leadership.
Labour insists any suggestion of private healthcare influence is “tenuous at best.”
Government Defends NHS, Campaigners Sound Alarm
The Department of Health and Social Care insisted: “The NHS is and will remain free at the point of use under this government – the health secretary has been absolutely clear on this commitment.”
Walker, now with the Trade Union and Socialist Coalition and running the Save King George Hospital blog, blasted the government for avoiding open debate.
“It’s happening bit by bit across the country, rather than Streeting standing up in Parliament and defending these cuts.”
More than 1,000 NHS job cuts have been reported recently in places like Cambridgeshire, Southampton, and the Isle of Wight. But BHRUT is the first trust to openly admit that clinical services could be slashed.
With critics mounting, Wes Streeting has yet to publicly respond.
