National Nurses United

the national health service is britain's most esteemed institution, providing a global example of how to run an egalitarian, publicly funded healthcare system for all. But now the NHS is under attack, facing patchwork privatization by money-hungry politicians and unscrupulous foreign investors. On Nov. 3, thousands rallied in London to make it clear that nobody was taking the NHS away from the British public. by gerard brogan The Auctioning of Britain's Pride E arly on a dark cold morning on Nov. 15, 1910, a 13year-old boy approached the Tytryst Coal Mine in Tredegar, South Wales, joining the line of other "men" destined for their long working day deep under the earth. This was the first day of a working life that would begin in a dangerous and harsh environment, but would lead to great and lasting accomplishments. The boy was Aneurin Bevan, one of 10 children, only six of whom would reach adulthood. His experiences in the mine, his siblings' deaths, his father's death from lung disease, and his political education in the working-class coal field community of South Wales created an anger and passion for social justice that he carried into a career of union organizing and politics. Bevan never forgot his experiences in the mine, remembering years later that "down below are the sudden perils—runaway trams hurtling down the lines, frightened ponies kicking and mauling in the dark, explosions, fire, drowning." Through the turbulent '20s and '30s and the long years of war in the '40s, Bevan proved a steadfast, eloquent, and inspirational leader of the working class in a socially divided Britain. When his intellect and affability with his fellow miners proved a threat to his employers at the mine, they fired him. After winning a scholarship to the Central Labor College in London, Bevan returned to Wales ready to revolutionize workers' unions. He spent many years searching in vain for employment at a mine before being appointed a union official. In 1928 he won a Labor Party seat in Parliament, where he continued to serve for the next three decades. His many achievements were crowned when, in 1948, the National Health Service (NHS)came into being with Bevan as its head. The NHS was conceived in 1942 when World War II was at its bleakest for the British and the need for a robust public health system to deal 18 REGISTERED NURSE with mass casualties was deemed paramount. At war's end, a new politic swept the nation, fuelled by the optimism of the returning soldiers who, after defeating fascism in Europe, were eager to fight social inequities at home. A new state focused on the people's welfare was the goal, with cradle-to-grave social services for all. The NHS would be the cornerstone of this new state. Tax supported, the service would be free to all at point of use, based on community care with general practitioners and community health centers at its core. The NHS dramatically improved the health of the nation. As services were utilized, more and new technologies and treatments were introduced, and the NHS continued to grow. The NHS is now the largest organization in Europe and employs more than one million people, serving close to 60 million people. Yet today, on the eve of its 60th birthday, the NHS' core values are under threat. As at its inception, it is unions and union values that are stepping to the fore to defend and protect this cherished British institution. Led by NHS Together, a group formed by health service unions and staff associations together with the Trades Union Congress, a national march and rally was held on Nov. 3rd to celebrate the W W W. C A L N U R S E S . O R G NOVEMBER 2007

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