Politicians have been urged to stop playing games with the NHS by the British Medical Association.
The BMA launched its general campaign on Monday, with the chair, Mark Porter, calling for an open and honest public debate about securing the future of the NHS and an end to political game playing with the nation’s health.
While it will be a boost to Labour plans to put the future of the NHS at the forefront of voters’ minds, the BMA is taking aim at all parties, with the council chair criticising Ed Miliband’s alleged intention to ‘weaponise’ the NHS.
Porter, said: “The NHS is one of the UK’s towering achievements, but for too long it has been used to play political games. With health the public’s number one election issue, this game playing is on the rise with all political parties laying the blame for the current NHS crisis at each other’s door rather than facing the problem head on.
“Against the background of the worst A&E waiting time figures for a decade, the public is being treated to claims and counter claims from political parties about ‘weaponising’ the health service,‘betraying’ the public’s trust on the NHS. Caught in the middle are thousands of patients and NHS staff waiting for real, evidenced solutions.”
The campaign, which will see thousands of posters featuring a giant toy tower representing the health service displayed across the country, coincides with a poll showing 77% of the public believe political parties are designing policies to win votes rather than focusing on what’s best for the NHS.
The BMA says all political parties should commit to tackling the major public health issues faced by society, and ensure services are - and remain - properly resourced, easy to access and free at the point of use. It also wants a commitment to long-term investment and to put the health and wellbeing of patients before profit.
At the BMA’s annual conference last year, Porter said the organisation would fight the government every day in the run-up to the election if it did not backtrack on changes to the NHS that he said had harmed patients.
Polling by Lord Ashcroft has shown that Labour has a clear lead over the Tories on the NHS and the opposition is keen to keep the issue in the public consciousness in the run-up to the vote on 7 May.
Porter said: “The scale of the campaign just goes to demonstrate just how concerned doctors are, and we aim to ensure that every member of the public sees it and adds their voice to ours in calling for an end to the game-playing and the start of an open and honest public debate on how we create a long-term, sustainable plan for the NHS.”
