From the very outset, our movement had a dream – healthcare for all, at no cost, available to everyone. Seventy years ago that dream became a reality, with the establishment of the National Health Service.
Fathered by Nye Bevan, but built and maintained by the hands of millions health workers, the NHS – not the buildings, but the people – is the crowning achievement of the labour movement, a clear example of socialism in action and the envy of the world.
Next week, our NHS reaches its latest major milestone – 70 years. Generations have been born and cared for in it. All of us, wherever we live or work, have had our lives touched by it.
This weekend, we come together to celebrate it.
On Saturday, UNISON will march through the streets of London in to celebrate and defend the National Health Service. We will stand alongside those who rely on it, cherish it and campaign for it to demand the end of privatisation and cutbacks in our health service – and show our thanks for the UNISON members who make the NHS so special.
I’m proud that our union, so intertwined with this incredible institution, has been the biggest contributor to getting this march organised. On Saturday, our union will march – purple and green banners and flags flying high – as we stand up for our National Health Service.
Assemble at 12 noon, Portland Place, London W1 (nearest tubes Oxford Circus/Great Portland St)
Find more information at http://www.ournhs.info/