Opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn (pictured) offered what he described as evidence that access to Britain’s State-run health service was being discussed in trade talks with the United States, handing reporters hundreds of pages of documents.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has denied that the National Health Service (NHS) is on the table in talks, but Corbyn, (above), yesterday said he had copies of leaked documents called “UK-US Trade and Investment Working Group full readout” suggesting otherwise.
The NHS, much loved in Britain, has become a key battleground before a December 12 election, which Johnson called to try to break the deadlock in parliament over the country’s exit from the European Union.
Corbyn may also be keen to shift the narrative away from criticism on Tuesday over what Britain’s chief rabbi said was his failure to stem anti-Semitism in the Labour Party. The governing Conservatives and Labour are offering very different visions for Britain, but both have pledged more funding for the NHS.
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News conference
Corbyn, a veteran socialist, told a news conference he had 451 pages of unredacted documents summarising UK-US talks and accused Johnson of plotting to sell off the NHS. All the documents are dated from before Johnson took power in July.
“So now we know, direct from the secret reports, that they never wanted you to see - the US is demanding that our NHS is on the table in negotiations for a toxic deal, it’s already been talked about in secret,” Corbyn said.
“That could lead to runaway privatisation of our health service. Mega corporations see Johnson’s alliance with (US President Donald) Trump as a chance to make billions from the illness and sickness of our people.”
“These uncensored documents leave Boris Johnson’s denials in absolute tatters.”
“It’s total nonsense,” he told reporters on the campaign trail. “I can give you an absolute cast-iron guarantee that this is a complete diversion, that the NHS under no circumstances will be on the table for negotiation, for sale.”
