Syrian hospital worker thanks public for 'restoring his faith' after NHS surcharge scrapped by Boris Johnson

Imogen Braddick21 May 2020

A Syrian migrant worker has thanked the public for "restoring his faith" in the country after the Government agreed to remove foreign NHS and care workers from the immigration health surcharge.

Boris Johnson was forced into an embarrassing U-turn on Thursday after strong warnings that the Government looked “mean-spirited and petty”.

Hassan Akkad, a hospital cleaner, had shared a passionate plea on Twitter on Wednesday to ask the public to help deliver a message to the Prime Minister about the lack of support for foreign workers.

Mr Akkad said he had felt "betrayed" and "stabbed in the back" after the Government initially refused to remove foreign workers from the surcharge or extend the bereavement scheme to all NHS support staff and care workers.

But, following the U-turn on both policies, Mr Akkad thanked unions, journalists and members of the public for "restoring his faith" in the country and for sharing his message.

"I hoped I played a very small role in making this happen," he said in a video on Twitter.

"Britain is great because of you," he said, adding that he will continue to use his platform for the "greater good".

Mr Akkad's initial video to Mr Johnson went viral, clocking up more than four million views, and the hospital cleaner said his colleagues had been giving him "virtual high fives" at work.

A carer from Jamaica who works in the West Midlands also welcomed the move, but called for it to be extended further.

“It should be extended further to everybody, because it’s not easy finding £1,000,” they said.

“It affects everybody, not only frontline workers.

“I know a few guys, one of them works for a company and he’s the only security for that company, and he’s not at work.

One minute silence to NHS heroes who lost lives to the Coronavirus

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“Even though he’s getting that 80 per cent, that’s the only thing he can get from the Government. His visa is going to expire any time soon as well.”

The carer, who hasn’t been able to work for two months due to absent pay, said they “don’t know” if they will be exempt due to their circumstances.

Mr Johnson's call to remove the surcharge is a victory for new Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, who spotlighted the burden placed by the charge on low paid hospital porters and care workers in the Commons.

Number 10 said work was "under way on how to implement the change" but full details would not be ready for some days.

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