CAMPAIGNERS handed Andy Burnham a “red card” today, demanding he immediately rip up a pharma deal with the US when he takes office.

The deal would divert £45 billion from the NHS’s patient care budget toward higher pharmaceutical costs, leading to 229,000 excess deaths in England, new research from the British Medical Journal (BMJ) revealed.

We Own It, Global Justice Now and Just Treatment urged Mr Burnham to give Parliament a say over any deal on pharmaceuticals following the revelations.

It was supported by Keep Our NHS Public and the 99% Organisation and attended by Baroness Jenny Jones and John McDonnell MP.

They staged a protest on Parliament Square today, also asking the incoming PM to examine the deal to protect the NHS and British patients.

Co-author of the BMJ research Professor Karl Claxton said: “Now is the time to find the courage to stand up for the NHS and fix the broken pharmaceutical pricing system so all NHS patients can access new drugs at affordable prices.”

The deal secured 0 per cent tariffs on British drug exports but would mean NHS funding will be diverted from other care by 2036 to pay for more medicines unless more funding is made available to cover additional costs.

Global Justice Now director Nick Dearden said to Mr Burnham, who is expected to become PM next Monday, that he must “stop the implementation of this deal, which threatens to do such irreparable damage to the NHS.”

We Own It outreach lead Johnbosco Nwogbo said: “This disastrous deal would cost more lives than the worst pandemic in living memory.”