DD of Rainford asks (Star, November 10), “How are we going to keep the NHS as more and more people are coming into our country taking advantage of this service without paying a penny into it?”


Leaving the EU will not change this in any way. EU migrants pay their taxes and national insurance contributions and official statistics show that they pay more into the system than they take out of it.


Also, UK citizens resident in other EU countries are allowed to use the health and social services of the countries concerned on a reciprocal basis.


Again, official statistics show that the majority of immigrants entering the UK come from countries outside the EU and this is even more the case with illegal immigrants who, obviously, pay nothing into the system.


“Leavers” make much of the opportunities for trade agreements with other countries which are supposedly available once the UK leaves the EU but this is likely to lead to increased immigration from such countries, as Theresa May has just found out in India.

Also, a trade agreement with Donald Trump’s America is likely to lead to increased privatisation of NHS services by opening them up to penetration by US business interests.

With a Tory government in London and the Republicans controlling both houses of Congress there is no longer anything to stop this happening which was, indeed, one of the aims of the Tory Brexiteers.


So, increased non EU immigration and steadily increasing privatisation of the NHS are the likely results of Brexit.


For me, DD’s letter is yet further proof that turkeys can be persuaded to vote for Christmas.


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