Donald Trump slapped down by Jeremy Hunt for slamming 'broke and not working’ NHS
4 min read
Donald Trump has sparked a fresh row with the UK government after he claimed the NHS is "broke and not working".
The President hit out at the UK's medical system as he attacked the Democratic Party's support for universal healthcare.
He also referred to the thousands of people who marched through the centre of London on Saturday demanding more funding for the health service.
But the president was immediately criticised by Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who took a swipe at the fact that millions of Americans have no medical cover at all.
The president took to Twitter just moments after former Ukip leader Nigel Farage appeared on right-wing American TV channel Fox News to denounce the state of the NHS, which he blamed on immigration.
Mr Farage said NHS hospitals were under-resourced and had become the "International Health Service".
"The problem is we haven’t got enough hospitals, we haven’t got enough doctors, we haven’t got enough facilities,” he said.
"Another problem we’ve got is the National Health Service has become the International Health Service."
Mr Trump’s intervention risks sparking fresh tensions with the Prime Minister, just 10 days after the pair had settled their differences at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
The president sparked a row last month after he cancelled a planned visit to London to open the new US embassy.
He claimed the decision was a protest at the "bad deal" struck on the building by the Obama administration, but it is understood he was angry at criticism aimed at him by British politicians, including the Mrs May.
The incident followed a rebuke from the Prime Minister in November, when she said Mr Trump was "wrong" to retweet anti-Muslim posts from far-right group Britain First.
The pair have also clashed over President Trump's decision to ban immigrants from some Muslim countries, America's withdrawal from the Paris climate change agreement and the US embassy in Israel's controversial move from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
Saturday’s “NHS in crisis: Fix it now” rally was organised by anti-austerity groups the People’s Assembly and Health Campaigns Together, and had speakers including Shadow Health Secretary Jon Ashworth and a host of trade union and activist figures.
Following Mr Trump’s tweet, Shadow Health Minister Justin Madders said the President was “right to focus” on the march, but defended the health service as “the most cost effective and efficient mode of healthcare provision”.
“Even Donald Trump knows, you can’t trust the Tories with our NHS,” he said.
“The President is right to focus on Saturday’s march in which thousands of people joined Labour in protesting eight years of austerity, which have drastically worsened patient outcomes and demoralised the workforce.
“A universal, publically provided NHS free at the point of use remains the most cost effective and efficient mode of healthcare provision, a fact the President would probably consider “fake news”.
“In its 70th year, only Labour will ensure our health service stays true to its founding principles and a world class service for all.”
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