On Friday 11th March in is expected that the House of Commons will debate the National Health Service Bill. the purpose of the Bill is as follows:

To re-establish the Secretary of State’s legal duty as to the National Health Service in England and to make provision about the other duties of the Secretary of State in that regard; to make provision about the administration and accountability of the National Health Service in England; to repeal section 1 of the National Health Service (Private Finance) Act 1997 and sections 38 and 39 of the Immigration Act 2014; to make provision about the application of international law in relation to health services in the United Kingdom; and for connected purposes.

Next Friday our MPs are debating a new law that could achieve everything local residents may want for our NHS: enshrining it as free for everyone, protecting it from profit-driven companies and stopping cynical government cuts. [1]

This new law is about the values residents hold close to us: an NHS that’s got people at its heart, not the profits of private companies. But there’s a catch. The law is being put forward by Green Party MP Caroline Lucas, which means this bold, NHS-saving proposal doesn’t have the government’s backing. [2] What it does have is us.

Unless 100 MPs turn up to the debate, the law won’t even be voted on. [3] Our NHS deserves better - it deserves a fair hearing. MPs are sorting their diaries out right now, so if enough of us email our MPs now, we can make sure the law gets the debate it deserves.

PS: Even if you think your MP doesn’t have the same views about the NHS as you do, it’s still important to ask them to attend the debate. It’s democratic to give this new law a fighting chance - and they can play their part by showing up and giving it a fair hearing.