Cambridge Health Feature Archive
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Maximus: Same Circus, Different Clowns
On Monday 2nd of March 2015, there were demonstrations in over 30 towns and cities around the UK (plus Toronto) against Maximus, the US based health insurance corporation that has taken over the contract from the French IT Company Atos to administer the Work Capability Assessment on behalf of the Department Of Work And Pensions. Atos announced its exit from the contract in early 2014 following an intense period of direct action against the company by groups such as Disabled People Against the Cuts.
The day of action was timed to coincide with the first working day of the new contract, with the spotlight turned on Maximus as well as the continued use of Work Capability Assessments and the life-threatening consequences of the ongoing government attacks on the sick and disabled.
In central London, to the chorus of "David Cameron is a W*****" (YouTube) activists from DPAC hit the streets, taking direct action to block traffic and at one stage bringing traffic to a standstill on Victoria Street in the shadow of Big Ben.
The demonstrations across the UK on the streets were complemented with an online Twitter campaign using the hashtags #Maximarse and #ScrapWCA, the latter trending for a number of hours. This gave the opportunity for those unable (including through sickness and disability) to make it to demonstrations to vent their anger and frustation around the Work Capability Assessment and at a government hell-bent on targeting the sick and disabled.
On the Newswire: Maximarse is more than a farce | Mental Health Resistance Network Statement | Wrexham joins National Day of Protest Against WCA & Maximus
Other links: Johnny Void | Video: Maximarse the Movie (YouTube)
HLS Exposed - Yet Again! SHAC To Shakedown Financial Investors In The City
For the seventh time in ten years Huntingdon Life Sciences have been infiltrated and exposed, revealing shocking cruelty and footage of animal experiments filmed inside HLS during 2007 and 2008. The investigation exposes the primate trade across three continents, including individuals captured in the wild and shipped over, enduring 30 hour journeys in small cages from as far as Vietnam.
An undercover worker inside a primate unit at HLS in Cambridgeshire filmed struggling monkeys strapped to chairs and forced to inhale products. Many were housed in one cubic metre cages and then taken out to be held down by workers as tubes are forced down their throats. 217 monkeys were killed in just five studies for customers including AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithkline and the Ministry of Defence. The company are a contract testing laboratory, testing any products, on any non-human animals, for any company; pharmaceuctical, household, beauty or otherwise.
In response to the horrific footage, the imprisonment of seven SHAC campaigners for 'conspiring to blackmail' the notorious vivisection laboratory and the business' falling share price, anti-vivisectionists will be taking to the streets of London on Friday 27th February during a global week of action against HLS' financials. The SHAC City Shakedown march and protest will be for the 70,000 animals imprisoned and abused inside the labs, targeting the financial institutions who profit from and delay the companies collapse.
As the value of Europe's largest and most exposed animal testing laboratory drops by over 80% in recent months, the New York Stock Exchange now have an extra reason to again kick the abusers off the exchange. Other reasons include the labs financial problems, serious debt, animal abuse, data falsification and scientific fraud.
Primate Trade Exposed: Full Documentary | HLS Footage | Photos | Reports: PDF | HTML | SHAC PDF
Demo Resources: SHAC City Shakedown Webpage | Why HLS? | The Protest | Download resources
Related Newswire: Bayer (HLS customer) painted in solidarity with imprisoned activists | Vegan Prisoners Updates; Greg, Gavin, Sarah & Dan W | Home visits for top barclays executives | Barclays has more demos in Birmingham | HLS Electronic Sit In: Make Friday the 13 bad luck for HLS Affiliates | HLS - new expose! | Solidarity from UC Berkeley Students | More Barclays cashpoints disabled | Suspicious package at Barclays | Is Recent Jailing of Anti-HLS Activists a Call to Action? | Barclays Demos in Birmingham | Financial Protests in the City | Pfizer Acquires Wyeth & Double Amount of Demos | South Wales Anarchists stand in solidarity with the SHAC 7 | UK SHAC 7 Heather Nicholson Speaks Out | Barclays cashpoints put out of action | Hackers target HLS suppliers | Letter from Shactivist/Veganarchist Prisoner Dan Wadham | Bayer Day of Action: West London / Hampshire | New York City | Cambridge | Chile | Sweden | Netherlands | More demos | More articles
SHAC Prepares For National March & Rally
On the 12th July, Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty (SHAC) hold national march and rally [Report | Pics] to show the mass opposition to the fraudulent vivisection industry and the vile 'experiments' at Huntingdon Life Sciences (HLS). SHAC is an international campaign aiming to close HLS, the largest contract testing laboratory in Europe.
The rally in the park included info stalls and food/drink from Veggies before campaigners marched through Peterborough. The demonstration ended in Alconbury, so to meet the animal abusers who kill 500 animals every day of the week to test products such as weed killer, food colourings and drugs.
Details: Webpage for the rally, march and demo - Info and times | Rally in the park - Map and meeting point
Reports from last demo in April: Pictures: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Video: 1 | 2
Newswire: HLS Largest Customers Fined For Overcharging Docters | Call for action at SHAC march x2 | Arson Attacks at HLS Animal Breeder | Video of AR Protesters Illegal Arrest at Arromight Hereford | Callout to any FIT watchers - SHAC rally July 12th | Action Alert: Largest HLS Investor: Part 1 & 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Dispatch from Andy Stepanian (SHAC 7) | HLS Supplier DHL trashed for Active Slaughter | Novartis Global Week of Action Roundup | Time For Action 4 - SHAC Need Your Footage + Trailer | Last Primate Lab in Austria to Close! | Staples lies and beagles die | Message from SHAC: May Raids Anniversary | SHAC May Raids Anniversary | ALF torch Staples trucks | PIA Stop Beagle Flights | Sciencelink animal lab has been abandoned | Novartis HQ painted and smashed (Video) | Previous march (Novartis): SHAC Report | Barriers dismantled
Previous features: Victory for animal rights campaigners | Activist Imprisoned for Shouting | Fisher Scientific Embarrassed Over Links with HLS | SHAC World Day for Lab Animals | Asahi Glass Protesters Harassed by Police | "March Against the Murderers"
Links: SHAC-UK | SHAC-UK Prisoner Support | Veggies | Antispeciesist Action | Animal Rights CopWatch | Indymedia UK SHAC topic page
Full Story | 6 additions | 4 comments >>
Britain is GMO free again
On the night of Friday the 6th of July, a group of activists converged on Britain's only GM trial site just outside Cambridge. They scaled the security fences and destroyed the crop of genetically modified potatoes.
This was the only crop of GM potatoes being grown in the UK, after the chemicals giant BASF abandoned plans for a GM potato trial in Yorkshire this year. There have been multiple protests at the Cambridge site [video] and at the Yorkshire site (where organic potatoes were planted [video]).
However BASF have permission lasting until 2011, so this may not be the end of the story ...
Background : GM back on agenda | sabotage promised | detailed talk report | audio interview re victory and protest 1st july
Campaign links : Mutatoes | Hedon Against GM | Cambridge GM Concern
Anti-GM Victory : One down, One to Go!
It seems there are not often victories to celebrate so it's strange when they occur seemingly unnoticed. That's exactly what's happened regarding the news that the chemicals giant, BASF have abandoned plans for a GM potato trial in Yorkshire this year, despite government consent.
Back in April there was an action in Hedon near Hull [1 | 2 ] to demonstrate public opposition to the first GM trials in the UK proposed in three years. Taking action before the trial began, the protesters planted their own organic spuds in what they thought was the field earmarked for the GM variety [1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6]. The aim was to invalidate the experiment before it was even started and while it turned out that they had picked the wrong field they did successful demonstrate that public opposition to GM crops is as strong and militant as ever [audio | video].
The planting of the other trial, located in Cambridge [1 | 2], went ahead despite local opposition and protests but campaigners say that it's not too late to drive home the message that "there is still no future for GM in the UK".
There is a national call out for a 'potato picnic' announced for Sunday 1st July near the site of the Cambridge trial. [flyer | directions]
Background : GM back on agenda | sabotage promised | detailed talk report | audio interview re victory and protest 1st july
Campaign links : Mutatoes | Hedon Against GM | Cambridge GM Concern
Full Story | 1 addition | 1 comment >>
'Defend the NHS' National Day of Action
Saturday, 3rd March, saw a national day of action to defend the National Health Service (NHS), called by NHS Together, an alliance of health service unions and staff associations together with the TUC. Demonstrations and rallies took place across the country, in Birmingham, Cambridge, Hackney (London), Leeds, Preston, Sheffield and other places. The aim of the protests, according to the organisers, was "to send a powerful message in celebration and defence of the NHS" against more cuts and privatisation. Almost three quarters of NHS trusts in the UK are reported last year that financial deficits are forcing them to make massive cutbacks; wards are being closed down, hospitals shut and jobs cut. Billions are going into 'restructuring' the service along market lines, with millions going on management consultants and financial advisers and millions more, in massive PFI payments, to shareholders and bankers.
Reports and pics: Defend the NHS Day: Sheffield Demonstration [photos] | Demo against the privatization of the NHS in Preston | Hackney Save NHS Demo | Leeds General Infirmary For Sale!
Previous Indymedia Features: Is Britain ready to defend its NHS? | The NHS in Crisis | Sheffield Children's Hospital: Save Ward S2 | Local Trusts Take Scalpel To NHS | Indymedia UK's Health topic page
Links: NHS Together | Keep Our NHS Public
Is Britain ready to defend its NHS?
The National Health Service is in a huge crisis. Crisis can be an over-used word, but in the case of the NHS it’s difficult to get across the scale of the problem without using it. Three quarters of the NHS trusts in the UK are reporting that financial deficits are forcing them to make cutbacks. Massive cutbacks that is. Wards are closed down, hospitals shut and jobs cut around the country. Billions are going to restructure the NHS along market lines, with millions going on management consultants and financial advisors, and millions more in massive PFI payments to shareholders and bankers. In one example venture capitalists have pocketed an extra £81m million in profits from the £220 million PFI scheme to build the Norfolk and Norwich hospital. Billions more are being diverted into a new, expanding private network of profit-seeking 'Treatment Centres', which are paid at enhanced rates, and select out the profitable treatments and patients, leaving the unprofitable behind in the NHS.
Over the last few months unions, patients, activists and campaigners have hit back in a wave of protest to halt the NHS reforms around the country. Thousands of people took part in public meetings around the country: [1] [2] [3] [4]. Protestors took to the streets in Birmingham, Cambridge [1] [2], Huddersfield, Liverpool, Manchester [1] [2], Oxford, Sheffield, Shropshire and Stamford. Other protests have happened in Morecambe Bay, Bristol, the Costwolds and Wolverhampton. The largest demonstration took place in Nottingham and was joined by over 3,000 people. After the announcement that the government has awarded a £1.5 billion NHS contract to Germany-based courier DHL, NHS Logistics staff walked out at their depots.
See also: UK Indymedia Health Pages
Previous feature articles: The NHS in Crisis | Sheffield Children's Hospital: Save Ward S2 | Local Trusts Take Scalpel To NHS
Other media: Bad Medicine | NHS To Be Reformed By Using A Hybrid Approach | Unison wins over Labour on NHS reform
Links: Keep Our NHS Public! | Unison | British Medical Association | Wikipedia on the NHS | The history of the NHS | Wikipedia on Private Finance Initiative (PFI) | Community Hospitals Association | Save Townlands Hospital Campiagn | Save Bridlington Hospital Campaign
Full Story | 1 addition | 4 comments >>
The NHS in Crisis
Crisis can be an overused word, but in the case of the NHS it’s difficult to get across the scale of the problem without using it. Three quarters of the NHS trusts in the UK are reporting that financial deficits are forcing them to make some form of cut backs this financial year.
But, hold on. The government says it’s putting more money into the NHS than ever before. For once the government is telling the truth - they are spending far more on the NHS than ever, but the cuts are still taking place... how on earth can they both be true?
The answer is simple, it's not a question of how much money, but where it goes. Private companies have become more deeply entrenched in the health service than ever before, on a level that would have been unimaginable even under the Tories.
Keep our NHS Public, Indymedia coverage [ 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 ]