The NHS should be exempted from the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), a controversial trade agreement between the EU and the United States, according to Labour. They argue that the agreement would allow American healthcare firms to take legal action should they be denied access to bid for NHS contracts. Prime Minister David Cameron has been a keen supporter of the proposed deal and has pledged he will put significant efforts into making it come to fruition as it could provide the UK with a £10bn economic boost.
In contrast Shadow Health Secretary Andy Burnham claimed the deal would call into question the founding principles of the NHS and claimed the health service should be excluded. This forms part of a wider backdrop in which Labour has shown increasing opposition to independent sector providers bidding to provide NHS services.
