The SNP is demanding that Sir Keir Starmer rules out including the NHS in any trade negotiations with Donald Trump.
Concerns are mounting after it emerged Labour’s Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, has accepted £372,000 from donors linked to private healthcare since 2015.
The UK Government is pushing for renewed trade talks with the United States as economic pressures mount in the wake of tariffs imposed during Trump’s presidency.
Scotland’s key export sectors including Scotch whisky and salmon suffered significantly under those levies.
During his time in office, Donald Trump openly stated that the NHS would be “on the table” in any trade negotiations with the UK.
His comments sparked outrage and continue to fuel anxiety about what future trade agreements may contain.
Since the last General Election, Wes Streeting has accepted £58,000 from private healthcare-linked sources alone.
He has previously said the UK has “a lot to offer” the US in access to NHS data for research purposes.
Streeting has also suggested he would go further than Tony Blair on NHS reform, stating he would “hold the door wide open” to private sector involvement.
This has led to renewed calls from the SNP for a “cast iron guarantee” that the NHS will remain off-limits in any trade deal.
SNP Health spokesperson Seamus Logan MP has said the Labour Government must make it “crystal clear” that the NHS is not up for negotiation.
He warned that Trump’s interest in accessing the NHS is well known and must be firmly rejected.
Logan said the idea of trading away any part of the NHS in a deal with Trump was “far too high a price to pay.”
He also criticised Streeting’s financial ties to private healthcare and his enthusiasm for opening the door to further privatisation.
The SNP insists that any deal with the US must protect the NHS’s founding principle of care free at the point of need.
They say it is vital that Scotland’s health service is not sacrificed in pursuit of economic gains.
There are fears that American firms could be given access to NHS services, data, or supply chains if safeguards are not put in place.
Logan said the SNP will continue to “stand firm” against any effort to undermine or sell off the NHS.
He urged Labour to put the issue beyond doubt and protect the NHS from creeping privatisation.
With Trump widely expected to feature heavily in US political life again, the SNP says pre-emptive action is needed now.
They believe any future UK Government must enter trade talks with clear red lines to protect public services.
The NHS, they argue, should never be part of a bargaining chip in international negotiations.
