Campaigners against the closure of the Whittington Hospital’s A&E will hold a day of action next month to pile more pressure on the government.
More than 100 residents attended a public meeting at the Whittington Community Centre last night to discuss the next stage of their campaign.
Attendees voted in favour of a day of action – with just two votes against – scheduled for Thursday 29 April throughout Islington and neighbouring boroughs. Shirley Franklin, joint chairwoman of the Defend the Whittington Hospital Coalition (DWHC), which organised the meeting, said the day of action would include strikes, leafleting, speakers and stunts.
“This is a great way of making people more aware of the campaign,” said Ms Franklin. “It won’t be a rally like before, but we want you to get involved wherever you can. It won’t just be outside the Whittington; we want you to go out into your local community and let them know what’s going on.”
Ms Franklin hopes that the day of action will put pressure on the government to stop what she called a “wider attack on health services across the capital”. To increase this pressure, DWHC will also set up a lobbying group to inundate MPs with letters and copies of their lengthening petition.
Representatives from unions, the NHS, the Whittington Hospital and political parties showed their support for the campaign at the meeting. A representative from Holloway bus garage said his colleagues were considering striking on the day of action, while the local branch of the teachers union pledged £500 to the campaign.
“We will support a lobby at the hospital,” said Alistair Smith, a secondary school teacher. “Children we teach rely on the hospital. We need it.”
Strong sentiments against the closure were expressed by many audience members, including Jeremy Corbyn, MP for Islington North, who called the potential closure “stupid, idiotic, dangerous”.
The speakers also emphasized the need to include nurses and other hospital staff in the campaign, who many felt had not been properly included so far.
The event will take place between 12 and 2pm on Thursday 29 April.
DWHC organized a march to the Whittington Hospital in Holloway on 27 February which attracted 4,600 supporters.
Currently, seven options are being considered for the Whittington, four of which involve the closure of the hospital’s A&E department. The NHS, who needs to cut £560million a year from their £2.27billion budget by 2017, claims people will get better healthcare if specialist services are concentrated on fewer, more expert sites.
If the A&E closes, residents will have to travel to either the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead or University College Hospital near Euston.
Read our live tweets from the meeting here.
