Polyclinics could ruin Labour at the polls, say health campaigners
The introduction of polyclinics could see Labour cruising into electoral "oblivion" in London, campaigners warned today.
Health experts were due to meet health minister Lord Darzi over his plans for super-surgeries which will combine a range of medical services in one centre.
The plans have met with fierce opposition and campaigners say that the Labour party will lose support if the polyclinics mean further cuts and privatisation of the NHS.
More than 100 GP surgeries in London could close to make way for polyclinics, with many fearing that figure could quadruple to 400. The British Medical Association is due to present the Government with a petition against the super-surgeries this week.
Geoff Martin, of London Health Emergency, today vowed to make Lord Darzi come clean over his proposals.
He said: "I want to know how polyclinics will be funded and whether the rumours are true that they will be run by private companies like United Health. I want to know what the risks are for local people.
"Core Labour supporters will be really angry if big American healthcare organisations make a fast buck out of our GP services." He added: "If Darzi tells me that he is up for more cuts and more privatisation I will warn him that Labour will cruise into oblivion in London."
United Health Europe won control of three GP surgeries in Camden earlier this year and companies are being invited to run surgeries nationwide.
The Conservatives claim that around 1,700 GP surgeries could close if the polyclinic proposals are rolled out across the country.
Health Secretary Alan Johnson said the BMA and Tory claims were "scare-mongering". All London primary care trusts are expected to rubber stamp the proposals at a meeting on Thursday.
GPs must see patients on time or pay for their care says Clegg
Current targets require doctors to offer appointments within 48 hours. The party's figures show more than three in 10 GP practices are failing to meet the target. More than one in 20 only guarantee an appointment within one or two weeks. Lib-Dem reforms include an "entitlement" system. Doctors who cannot provide care within targets must patients elsewhere or pay for private treatment. Mr Clegg will say in a speech to the Kings Fund that the scheme is a success in Denmark.
The Lib-Dems accused the Government of "botched" NHS reorganisation, and dismissed Tory solutions as "a slick PR campaign". Under the Lib-Dems' health reforms, GPs would be paid a premium for treating poorer patients, patient-backed boards would decide on the need for polyclinics and patients with chronic conditions would decide on their care packages.
