Thank you for contacting me about the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), the NHS and the tabled amendment to the Queen's Speech.
I appreciate your concerns on this matter. However negotiators from the United States and the European Union have repeatedly made it clear that it will continue to be for EU member states to make decisions about whether and to what extent they involve the private sector (or, more pertinently, don’t) in the provision of public services. The EU's chief negotiator on TTIP has also reinforced that EU countries will continue to be free to decide how they run their public health systems.
I personally do not believe that the NHS is under any threat from the TTIP negotiation.
The current draft of the TTIP text includes a wide range of protections for the NHS, that draw on the exemptions and protections that already operate successfully in the trade deals we have signed with countries across the world. You can find a brief outline as to these exclusions on the European Commission's website, as well as links to open letters from Commissioner Malmström at the following address:
http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/press/index.cfm?id=1115
Ultimately, there are no previous examples under which the NHS has been adversely affected by a trade deal. Even concerning investment protection provisions, the UK has around 90 agreements, with a consecutive running time of over 2,000 years, and none have adversely affected the NHS.
Having said all the above the Government accepted the amendment to the Queen Speech and I was happy to support it as I beleive it reinforces what should in any event be the case.
Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.
