BIG BEN TO GO BLUE FOR NHS’ 70TH BIRTHDAY

Parliament

North Cumbria NHS Trust’s “Go Blue” campaign is to extend to The Palace of Westminster, which is to be lit with blue light on 5 July, to mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the NHS.

This North Cumbria NHS Trust campaign seeks to mark the Health Service’s birthday by lighting Cumbrian landmarks and buildings blue. It comes as part of a wider programme of events and displays to commemorate this historic anniversary. Services will be held at Carlisle Cathedral, Westminster Abbey and churches across the country, while tea parties and community events have been planned in Cumbria and across the UK. In Westminster, an NHS70 Parliamentary Awards Ceremony will be held on 4th July, at which Cumbria Health on Call is a finalist in the Excellence in Primary Care category.

Rory has been kept abreast of the North Cumbria NHS Trust’s plans to celebrate the NHS’ birthday and was so taken with the “Go Blue” campaign that he contacted the Office of the Speaker of the House of Commons to see if it would be possible for the Palace of Westminster to participate. Rory’s request was approved on 18 June by both John Bercow, the Speaker of the House of Commons, and Lord Fowler, the Lord Speaker of the House of Lords, and the illumination will take place on 5 July. The Palace is only lit up for major national events and campaigns, and this announcement has been many months in the making.

Commenting on this, Rory said, “It is wonderful news that the Palace of Westminster is to take part in the North Cumbria NHS Trust’s ‘Go Blue’ campaign, which is a fitting way to celebrate the 70th birthday of our precious National Health Service. It is appropriate that, on the anniversary of one of our country’s proudest legislative achievements, both houses of parliament have approved this visual display of the NHS’ importance and our collective commitment to its preservation. With both the birthday and the recent announcement of the increase in the NHS’ budget there is a great deal to celebrate. I would like to pay a huge tribute to the North Cumbria NHS Trust for their wonderful idea, and to Mr John Bercow, Lord Fowler and all of the staff at the Palace of Westminster who have made this possible. I am very much looking forward to seeing the illumination”.

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