Pamela Fitzpatrick, director of Jeremy Corbyn’s Peace and Justice Project and founder of Harrow’s new grassroots political party Arise, has sharply criticised local MP Gareth Thomas after his public visit to Cygnet Hospital in Harrow this week.
Thomas, Labour MP for Harrow West, praised the hospital for “working closely with the NHS and community partners to make a real difference in people’s lives.” But Fitzpatrick said he is misleading the public by failing to disclose that Cygnet Hospital is owned by Cygnet Health Care Ltd – a private company whose 2024 accounts show revenues of over £680 million, up £70 million on the previous year.
“Much of their income comes from NHS and local authority contracts,” Fitzpatrick said. “Cygnet’s parent company, Universal Health Services Inc, is a US private healthcare giant. We the people are the ones paying for these companies’ vast profits. Imagine if that profit was reinvested into the NHS instead of going to shareholders.”
Fitzpatrick argued that Thomas’s endorsement highlights a broader problem in British politics: “Imagine if we had MPs who would fight for an NHS free of private companies rather than cosying up to them. Another world is possible – one based on the needs of the people, not the profits of corporations. But politicians like Thomas aren’t going to deliver that for us. It’s up to us.”
Launched in August, Arise positions itself as a new local alternative to the main political parties ahead of the 2026 Harrow Council elections. The movement, Fitzpatrick said, was “born out of frustration” with both Labour and the Conservatives.
“Whether it’s Tory or Labour, we really haven’t seen improvement in Harrow,” she told supporters at the launch. “Now is the time to come together and demand change — because we deserve better.”
Thomas, Labour MP for Harrow West, praised the hospital for “working closely with the NHS and community partners to make a real difference in people’s lives.” But Fitzpatrick said he is misleading the public by failing to disclose that Cygnet Hospital is owned by Cygnet Health Care Ltd – a private company whose 2024 accounts show revenues of over £680 million, up £70 million on the previous year.
“Much of their income comes from NHS and local authority contracts,” Fitzpatrick said. “Cygnet’s parent company, Universal Health Services Inc, is a US private healthcare giant. We the people are the ones paying for these companies’ vast profits. Imagine if that profit was reinvested into the NHS instead of going to shareholders.”
Fitzpatrick argued that Thomas’s endorsement highlights a broader problem in British politics: “Imagine if we had MPs who would fight for an NHS free of private companies rather than cosying up to them. Another world is possible – one based on the needs of the people, not the profits of corporations. But politicians like Thomas aren’t going to deliver that for us. It’s up to us.”
Launched in August, Arise positions itself as a new local alternative to the main political parties ahead of the 2026 Harrow Council elections. The movement, Fitzpatrick said, was “born out of frustration” with both Labour and the Conservatives.
“Whether it’s Tory or Labour, we really haven’t seen improvement in Harrow,” she told supporters at the launch. “Now is the time to come together and demand change — because we deserve better.”
Harrow Monitoring Group 