It is appropriate that tonight, on the 40th anniversary of the founding of the National Health Service, I should be asked to present this petition on behalf of the Royal College of Nursing. It has been signed by 500,000 people from all parts of the United Kingdom, including more than 26,000 from my county of Fife. The sheer scale of the response to the petition is surely a true sign of the depth of feeling engendered by this issue.

reaffirm that the National Health Service shall remain funded from taxation and free at the point of delivery; legislate to remedy the cumulative underfunding of the National Health Service identified by the House of Commons Social Services Select Committee; implement and fully fund the recommendations of the Review Bodies for health service staff pay; ensure through legislation that spending on the National Health Service grows to meet the health challenges posed by longer life expectancy, new medical advances and emerging medical problems; affirm that health shall receive a fair share of the nation's wealth.