OUR NHS isn't free, we've paid all our lives. We keep getting told how lucky we are to have a free NHS, so we may start to believe it. I don't.

Every person who works, has income tax plus a quite a large amount called National Insurance, no-one gets to choose, it's taken out of your wages before you receive them.

National Insurance is protection when we are ill, at one time governments told us we were cared for from the cradle to the grave.

So there you are, we all pay for the NHS.

I am very lucky, I have never been ill in my life, I had six children, each born at home, I keep as far from doctors and hospitals as possible. But there are thousands and thousands of people like me, who don't cost the NHS anything.

We can't claim our insurance back.

So it annoys me when I read that old people cost this much or that much, these are the people who worked and have paid thousands of pounds in National Insurance.

I asked our last MP where all this money went, because I'd never sort of had my whack with never being sick.

I got a proper MP reply "You're lucky to have good health" no mention of the cash I put into the NHS over the years.

Each year we are told the NHS is short of cash, or there's some looming worry.

The winter troubles, the hot weather troubles. But hang on things can't be too bad. People still pay National Insurance – true Britain is the fifth richest nation on this planet. We all pay for glasses, dentists, foot care things that were always free. True.

In England hospitals receive millions in car park fees (Scotland and Wales don't charge car parks).

When I hear such dreadful warnings of places who can't cope – you can bet, there's plans for a bit more privatisation, usual called out-sourcing, special schemes, taken over, sorry going private is the cold truth.

I honestly believe this is why we are being given such dire warnings about the NHS. Will we see the likes of Richard Branson get a foot hold in yet more hospitals in Britain.

Labour can't say too much, they allowed too much and too many NHS services to go private.

MAUREEN HARRIS

Raleigh Street

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