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Thousands march to save The Whittington Hospital
UP to 5,000 people are to descending on Islington on Saturday in a valiant bid to save The Whittington Hospital.
The march from Highbury Corner to The Whittington in Magdala Avenue, Archway, will be the biggest that north London has seen in recent years.
The Whittington Hospital could lose its accident and emergency department under a mass shake-up being planned by health chiefs.
The plans being drawn up by the North Central London NHS could also see The Whittington's maternity unit, intensive care unit and children's beds axed.
The march has been organised by the Defend the Whittington Hospital Coalition.
Campaigners are assembling at Highbury Corner at midday in order to walk the length of Holloway Road.
The march is expected to reach The Whittington by about 1.30pm where a rally will take place.
Labour MPs Jeremy Corbyn and Emily Thornberry, Liberal Democrat MP Lynne Featherstone, Green Party candidate Emma Dixon and leader of Islington Council Terry Stacy are among the politicians that will address the massive crowd.
Keep Our NHS Public campaigners Wendy Savage and Candy Udwin will also be rallying support for the hospital.
Zozi Goodman, joint chairwoman of the Defend the Whittington Hospital Coalition, is trying to get as many people as possible down to the march.
She said: "We are encouraging everybody to come and show the NHS that this is something we are not going to take lying down.
"We think it's probably going to be the biggest protest in north London for many years. This is the one way in which we can really make our voices heard."
People arriving at the march may need to arrive by bus or train because of problems with the Tube over the weekend. Archway station is closed for engineering works and Finsbury Park and Highbury and Islington stations will not be served by the Victoria line.
The Archway-bound carriageway of Holloway Road will also be closed to traffic between 12pm and 4pm.
And up to 20 bus routes will be affected, with some being diverted and others forced to terminate early.
For more information about travel disruptions, visit www.tfl.gov.uk
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