Rushanara Ali challenged David Cameron over his record on local GPs surgeries and the NHS in Tower Hamlets at this week’s Prime Minister’s Questions.

With news that 5 GP surgeries in the borough are due to close after Government changes to funding, Rushanara said:

“On the Prime Minister’s watch, five GP surgeries in my borough, and 98 nationally, face closure. Is that what he meant when he promised to protect the NHS?”

The Prime Minister responded: “What I meant when I said we would protect the NHS is just that. We are spending £12.7 billion more on the NHS; Labour said that that was irresponsible. We have 7,000 more doctors in our NHS, 3,000 more nurses in our NHS, and over 1,000 more midwives in our NHS, but there is something we have less of in our NHS—we have 19,000 fewer bureaucrats, and that money has been piled into patient care, including improving primary care right around the country.”

Speaking after PMQs, Rushanara said:

“The Prime Minister’s refusal to focus on cuts to frontline services in Tower Hamlets shows how he has failed to protect our NHS. It’s shocking these cuts will hit areas such as Tower Hamlets the hardest. His Government are playing politics with primary care and it is local residents who will feel the loss of surgeries they know and trust.”

Reflecting on the local campaign to save GP surgeries in the borough, Rushanara added:

“It is the Labour Party which is standing up for our local NHS.  Despite his promises, David Cameron’s record on the NHS needs to be called out. I will continue to support local residents, campaigners and Labour councillors in their work to save these local surgeries.”