As part of the Brexit Bill voting in Parliament, shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna launched a bid to get the Government to publish the impact of Brexit on NHS finances.
This is after the Leave campaigners made some pretty big promises during the Brexit campaign, including that there would be an extra £350 million lying around for the NHS.
You might remember it, you know, from being in giant letters on the side of their big red bus.
The Labour MP for Streatham tabled an amendment to the Brexit Bill that the Government should have to assess the effect of Brexit on the public purse and particularly that pesky £350 million, before triggering Article 50.
The amendment was defeated 337 votes to 288.
It's official – Govt votes down #350mForTheNHS, lets down Leave voters & confirms Theresa May's Brexit deal won't help the health service pic.twitter.com/N1cVqwxPEs
— Labour Health (@LabourHealth) February 8, 2017
People were quick to point out that the MPs who’d voted against the amendment were the very ones who’d made the claim in the first place.
Hilariously (is that right word?) all Leave Tories voting against @ChukaUmunna amendment for the bus slogan on £350m for NHS to be law
— Robert Peston (@Peston) February 8, 2017
Chuka obviously wasn’t impressed.
Boris Johnson and other Vote Leave MPs just voted against the #350mForTheNHS that they promised in the #EUref. It is a disgrace! #LeaveWatch pic.twitter.com/pFKhzXA9I7
— Chuka Umunna (@ChukaUmunna) February 8, 2017
Dominic Cummings, founder of the Vote Leave campaign, said the pledge had been “necessary to win”.Critics of the amendment disagreed that the bus had even said the £350 million would go to the NHS.
#A50
Written on Brexit bus
"We send EU £350m a week
Lets fund the NHS instead"
It did NOT say that the NHS would get all the £350m a week.— Cllr.Brian Silvester (@CllrBSilvester) February 7, 2017
We must’ve misread it then.
