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Scores of protesters supporting student midwives and nurses marched against the government’s plan to scrap NHS bursaries in Middlesbrough tow n centre today.

As part of the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s Autumn Spending Review in November, Chancellor George Osborne announced that the NHS Bursary would be scrapped for student midwives and nurses starting their courses on or after September 2017.

Instead, course fees and maintenance would be paid via a student loan in the same way that non-healthcare students pay for their courses.

In his speech Mr Osbourne said that the changes would help “create up to 10,000 new training places in this parliament”.

But protestors say the changes would mean that “healthcare students could leave university with over £50,000 worth of debt”.

The demo, which set off fro m Middlesbrough Town Hall at 12pm, was supported by Unison, Unite, the Royal College of Midwives, Teesside People’s Assembly, 999 Call for the NHS and Teesside Free Education Campaign.

A statement released by the protest organisers said: “Student nurses, midwives and other allied health professions work up to 2,300 hours in clinical placements over the course of their degree.

“They work 12.5 hour shifts, weekends and nightshifts providing care to the women, patients and their families.

“ The NHS bursary pays for course fees and helps with living costs including childcare.

“Even the maximum bursary equates to well under the minimum wage.

“To add to this graduate healthcare jobs are some of the lowest paid in the country with pay rises being capped at 1% for another four years.”

Protest organiser Gemma Gordon said: “I am a third year student midwife with a young family, mortgage and bills. I left my job and started my course at the age of 28.

“The course is intense with theory work, essays and clinical placements.

“Whilst in clinical placements, I work 37.5 hour weeks including 12.5 shifts, weekends and nightshifts providing care to women and their families.

“After completing shifts we are encouraged to reflect upon our practice, filling our knowledge gaps with reading, so we can constantly improve our care.

“I was born to be a midwife and without the NHS bursary I would have been unable to pursue the career I was born to do. Many will be excluded from a healthcare career based on their ability to pay not care.”

Protest organiser Elliott Best added: “The bursary has let me join a profession that I really love and it would be a shame if many caring people don’t get the same opportunity in the future.”

The Government plans will force nurses into debt of at least £51,600 by making them pay the entire bill for their training, even though nurses spend 50% of their training time working for the NHS on clinical placements, and their starting salary is £22,799. September this year will be the last time anyone in England can apply for the bursary.

Speaking at the march, Tom Blenkinsop, MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, said: “This government has spent five years reducing the amount of places for nurses and now they are taking away their bursaries.

“You have to remember that the bursaries are tied to a contract and we’re talking about people who haven’t had a pay rise in five years.”

Middlesbrough MP Andy McDonald said: “Let’s be under no illusion about what is going on here. We all know what the outcome is going to be.

“They’re now talking about further privatisation.

“This will burden out midwives and nurses with debt.

“It is our NHS. Let’s keep it.”