Wearside MP Julie Elliott has taken to the streets of Sunderland to call for extra cash for the “underfunded and understaffed” NHS.

Julie, MP for Sunderland Central, handed out Labour Party leaflets highlighting issues with NHS funding on Saturday at The Bridges.

She said: “Under the Tories our NHS is underfunded and understaffed. Millions languish on waiting lists, or are forced to wat hours in A&E.

“One in four patients have to wait a week or more to see or speak to a GP or nurse or don’t get an appointment at all. This simply isn’t good enough.”

The number of full-time GPs in the NHS Sunderland Clinical Commissioning Group area has fallen from 201 in September 2013 to 154 in March this year, according to Department of Health statistics.

Statistics also show that more than half of local clinics have a ratio of more than 2,000 patients to one family doctor, while the worst-staffed practices have nearly 3,000 registered patients to one.

“The NHS is our party’s proudest creation. We created it to care for us all – but now it’s time for us to care for the NHS,” said Julie.

** Thousands of Labour supporters joined hundreds of events across Britain today, including the one in Sunderland, to demand that Theresa May give the NHS extra funding.