Protester Ashok Sethi said: There s been a lot of deception. The Tories have made a commitment not to privatise, so if they have made a commitment not to privatise I do not understand why this has been allowed. It can be undone, it has to be undone, we don t want them.
Alyson Burberry said the decision makes a mockery of government promises adding: The (former) chief executive of Operose is a health advisor to Number 10.
Samantha Jones was appointed as Boris Johnson s health advisor earlier this month.
A flyer saying saying Operose is a cuckoo in the NHS nest at the anti GP takeover protest in Willesden
Robin Sharp, chair of BPV, said: The prime minister said that the NHS is not for sale but when an American healthcare corporation buys 49 GP practices with no serious scrutiny to date you must wonder how true that is. The idea that nothing will change is fanciful.
Nan Tewari, a patient of The Wembley Practice, said: “On the one hand you have NHS region insisting Brent CCG has no choice but to agree the Operose takeover and on the other, it is advising that ultimate responsibility lies with Brent CCG as the legal decision-maker of the Brent GP surgeries’ future.
Barry Gardiner MP and health secretary Matt Hancock.
- Credit: PA/Gareth Fuller/Tolga Akmen
Concerns have been raised with health secretary Matt Hancock about possible delays getting the Covid-19 vaccine to care home residents.
After Mr Hancock s statement to Parliament about coronavirus restrictions on Thursday (December 17), Brent North MP Barry Gardiner asked about issues around splitting up packs of the vaccine.
Mr Hancock told the House there has been significant progress on tackling this issue .
Referencing James Canning, Brent s first octogenarian to receive the vaccine earlier this week, he said: While congratulating him and the Wembley Practice team who delivered it, does the secretary of state share my concern that care homes in Brent have been advised that the 970 doses that are in the vaccine packs cannot be split because of the licensing conditions, meaning that those in our care homes who are over 80 may have to wait until February or for the Oxford vaccine befo
Octogenarian James Canning received the Covid vaccine at The Wembley Practice.
- Credit: Barry Gardiner
GP practices this week began administering the first vaccine against Covid-19.
Octogenarian James Canning at the Wembley Centre for Health and Care was the first to receive the vaccine.
Brent North MP Barry Gardiner said: “I am delighted that Brent has started to roll out the vaccine. Congratulations to The Wembley Centre for Health and Care and to the CCG who have worked with BAPS to expand their staff and deliver this.
This week, English GP practices started taking delivery of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine from central hubs, with the over-80s among those called up to receive the jab.