The US ambassador to the UK, Woody Johnson, has sparked concerns that the entire British economy could be up for grabs in post-Brexit trade negotiations, which could potentially mean that private firms in the US could bid for NHS contracts.
Speaking to the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show, Mr Johnson said that the US is already eyeing up all components of a possible deal and “trying to get everything lined up so when the time comes we’re ready to go”, the Independent reports.
When asked if he thought that healthcare would be included in the deal, he went on to say that “in a trade deal all things that are traded will be on the table”.
However, health secretary Matt Hancock responded by saying that the NHS isn’t for sale and the service wouldn’t be hit with private bidding from pharmaceutical conglomerates and healthcare companies in the US.
But Labour politicians voiced other concerns, such as Jonathan Ashworth – shadow health secretary – who described Mr Johnson’s comments as “terrifying” and went on to add that a consequence of leaving the EU without a deal and then following this up with a trade deal with the US would mean that the NHS is indeed up for sale.
President Donald Trump is currently in the UK on a three-day state visit and he has just echoed the sentiments of the US ambassador, insisting that the NHS should be included in any deal negotiations between the UK and the US after Brexit.
According to the Independent, he made his comments during a press conference at the Foreign Office, alongside Theresa May, who did her best to downplay his remarks.
She noted that the point of trade deals is negotiation, with both sides coming to an agreement about what trade deals will include in the future.
The British Medical Association (BMA) has also apparently waded into the mix and issued a statement, calling for all those in contention for the Conservative leadership race to make a commitment to excluding the NHS from post-Brexit negotiations with the US.
“We have an unequivocal message for the next Conservative leader and the future prime minister: profit should never take priority over the protection of the health service and the healthcare of citizens,” the BMA went on to say.
Meanwhile, international trade secretary Liam Fox has said that leaving without a deal in place could be used as a weapon by people looking to break the UK up, the BBC reports.
He explained that the next prime minister should tell the EU that the country wants to leave the Union with a deal so as to allow for minimal disruption, but a no-deal option must still stay on the table to aid negotiations.
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