NHS trusts in the East of England pay at least £127 million a year to private companies, an investigation has revealed.

GMB Union sent Freedom of Information requests to trusts across the region, with responses showing they spent £127,295,037 per year on outsourced contracts.

Just 10 trusts in the East of England responded to the request – meaning the true figure could be far higher.

The figures emerge as GMB’s annual congress in Brighton delivers a message to the Government over the NHS today [Monday].

Mo Akbar, London Ambulance Service worker, told GMB Congress:

“GMB members demand an end to privatisation.

“We must bring all outsourced services like cleaning, catering, and facilities back in-house.

“We demand real terms restorative pay from the fourteen years of brutal austerity.

“Workers and communities should have more say in how the NHS is run, ensuring decisions focus on patient care, not financial targets.

“Health outcomes are tied to poverty, housing, and working conditions, so NHS rebuilding must also address these inequalities.

“This Labour Government will have a crisis of legitimacy if they choose a path of further privatisation of the NHS, which would put at risk the sense of the collectivism that is at the heart of our health service

“We must be resolute in fighting for our National Health Service.”