NHS Sinn Féin Day of Action in west Belfast

IN A STRONG DEMONSTRATION of support for the NHS and health workers, Sinn Féin activists staged a 'Day of Action' across west Belfast last weekend which deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness and the Chair of the Assembly Health Committee, Maeve McLaughlin, travelled from Derry to take part in.

Across west Belfast, from the Lower Falls to Twinbrook, local activists set up stalls where they handed out leaflets and collected thousands of signatures as citizens backed the Sinn Féin Day of Action and voiced fears at the erosion of the NHS by the Tory Government at Westminster.

As Martin McGuinness and Maeve McLaughlin travelled across the constituency they were warmly greeted by shoppers and passersby.

● West Belfast MLA Pat Sheehan carrying the message on the streets

On Saturday morning, Martin McGuinness and a delegation of Sinn Féin MLAs – including Fra McCann, Jennifer McCann, Pat Sheehan, Rosie McCorley and Alex Maskey – held an in-depth engagement with health workers and trade unionists in An Cultúrlann Mac Adam Ó Fiaich.

Alex Maskey, who chaired the engagement, afterwards described it as an “indication of Sinn Féin's unequivocal support for the NHS and health workers”.

Speaking to An Phoblacht, Martin McGuinness said:

“The British Government assault on public finances is having a detrimental impact on services provided by Executive departments in the North.

“Nowhere is this more acutely felt than in the health service.”

The Sinn Féin leader at Stormont went on to pledge the party's “unequivocal support” for health workers' demand for a living wage.

“We have met trade unions and support their campaign for a 1% pay increase and the campaign for a living wage,” he said.

“While nurses wait for that 1% pay rise, £55million in bonuses was paid to consultants over the past five years.

“We advocate the introduction of working arrangements designed to facilitate frontline workers.”

Meanwhile, Maeve McLaughlin called for “proper financial provision” for community-based initiatives geared toward preventing illness.

“Proper consideration must be given to creating an infrastructure that enables treatment in cases where periods of hospitalisation are not necessarily required,” she said.

She highlighted matters relating to suicide prevention, addiction and mental illness which, she said, could be more effectively addressed if patients had access to properly-resourced, community-based facilities.

“Do nothing and people in need of care will continue to view A&E as their only option.”

Maeve McLaughlin added:

“While ultimately the blame for the mess in the Health Service lies with the Tories, its problems were compounded by the failure of successive DUP ministers to grasp the nettle and invest in community health initiatives as outlined in Bairbre de Brún's 2002 Investing for Health initiative.”