It’s fairly well known that Ed Miliband is firmly fixed on the general election in the UK, to be held on May 7th 2015.

But, of course, he is aware of the impact that the European Elections can have, which can act as a useful barometer of the level of unpopularity at the current political incumbents.

On 29 December 2013, Andy Burnham MP tweeted at the NHA Party to ‘RT if you agree‘ if there needed to be a “broad campaign against market forces”:

It received 454 RTs.

But it did come across Clive Peedell’s RADAR. Clive is the co-chair of the National Health Action Party.

It was shared by Clive the same day in fact.

It received 20 RTs.

Clive has 12.1K followers.

Andy has 54.9 K followers.

To my knowledge, I don’t think the NHA Party or Clive ever took up Andy on the offer or replied to the tweet (but I could be wrong.)

But here, Louise Irvine, MEP candidate for the European Elections, who was the lead for the Save Lewisham campaign against Jeremy Hunt in the High Court and the Court of Appeal clearly has many of the same reservations as Labour and Andy Burnham.

Irvine is critical of how clause 118 (now clause 119), a legislative step would allow ‘unaccountable bureaucrats’ to make decisions about NHS reconfigurations, and an “acceleration of privatisation”.

She is also highly critical of the EU-US ‘free trade agreement’, which will ‘lock in privatisation, whereby ‘private companies could sue the British government”.

“Labour is in a muddle. It is a partly committed to the NHS, but feels it can flirt with privatisation.”

But Andy Burnham MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Health, recently rocked up at the Bermondsey Village Hall in 12th April 2014.

Burnham argued that “we need MEPs to protect the NHS from the EU-US free trade treaty.”

Burnham made special reference to the Lewisham campaign, mentioning a key campaigner in his speech, calling it a ‘famous victory… which was a message to an arrogant government.”

He also spoke of ‘unprecedented pressure in A&E’ in London, due to “massive cuts in primary care”.

And 8 mins 4 secs in, Burnham began a massive tirade on the aspects of the EU-US free trade treaty which he argued would damage our interests in the NHS:

“I have said that, before, even I think we let the market in too far into the NHS.”

“We can’t carry on letting this happen, or if – we do – it will devour the NHS and everything that is precious about it.”

“That’s why I am absolutely clear that the NHS has to be seen as a ‘preferred provider’. We repeal the Health and Social Care Act (2012).”

“Labour proudly stands for a public NHS again. That’s where we should be, and there’s where I want you to be too, fighting the privatisation.”

“That’s important for the European elections too. If we don’t get the European Parliament with our MEPs in it, the threat goes up to an whole different level.”

“Why? Our ability to protect the NHS moves to fall out of our hands. Why? – it’s because of this trade treaty that is being negotiated in Brussels right now; it’s between the EU and US which has some positive aims but, if it stays at it is, it could have the effect of opening up the NHS to US corporate entities.”

In the second Farage-Clegg debate on the BBC, Farage was vehemently anti-multinational corporations, but Burnham later remarks that UKIP have said previously the NHS should be ‘put out to tender’.

Burnham continues, “The issue – it’s the combination of the two entitires. The Health and Social Care Act having exposed the NHS to the full glare of the EU competition law, and then the US-EU free trade treaty, and then we are in a totally different world, and our ability, as I say, to protect the NHS has gone. It’s that serious.”

Burnham then talks about his ‘good hearing’ to argue for an exemption for the NHS from this legislation.

“They’ve said that the NHS should be in the scope of the EU-US free trade treaty. The LibDems have said nothing.”

The National Health Action Party appears to have blamed Labour too for contributing to the privatisation of the NHS.

However, it is currently unclear whether the Party as a whole is grandstanding as a protest vote in a ‘plague on all your houses’ way, or is offering constructive solutions to move things forward.

Clive Peedell has often spoken about his shared vision of Bevan for a public NHS.

Many of us in Labour like Clive much, so it will be interesting how things progress from here.