ANGRY protestors called for Dovercourt shoppers to sign a petition against a new EU deal they fear will see parts of the NHS sold off.

Harwich residents took to Station Road last Friday with placards and banners to speak out against the threat to healthcare.

Around 200 mock estate agent signs are also going up outside homes, announcing the NHS is not for sale.

Hannah Smith, of William Bleakley Mews, Dovercourt, said they hoped to draw the attention of MP Bernard Jenkin to the concerns.

“Our local MP must get to grips with the threat the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership deal poses to the NHS,” she said.

“I don’t think we should be having a deal in the UK where people in America make money off the back of sick people.

“The maternity unit in Harwich is working pushed to the limit, which isn’t down to midwives it’s red tape.

“I’ve had all my children on the back of the NHS for free so I’m hugely grateful for the work they do.”

After a week of campaigning Hannah says she has 600 signatures so far and is pleased with the response.

The trade and investment partnership is a series of deals between the European Union and the United States to reduce barriers to trade for businesses.

One of the main concerns with the deals is the opening up of services in Europe like public health to investment from US companies – essentially meaning further privatisation of the NHS.

An element of the deals would also be the creation of a new court, the Investor State Dispute Settlement, which could be used by foreign investors to sue governments over actions which hurt their businesses.

The fear is that if an American private healthcare firm was prevented by buying up part of the NHS, they would be able to use this court and claim millions from the British government in compensation for lost business.