Keir Starmer pitches singalong with Rod Stewart as he offers to fund hospital scans

FILE - Rod Stewart performs at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival on April 28, 2018. A plea deal between Stewart and Florida prosecutors to settle charges he and his adult son Sean battered a security guard at a New Year's Eve party two years ago has fallen through. The pair are now scheduled to stand trial on misdemeanor battery charges in January. (Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP, File)
Sir Rod Stewart has offered to fund up to 20 hospital scans. Credit: PA

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has offered to go for "a singalong with Rod Stewart and thank him for his words" after the star described the situation in the NHS as "ridiculous".

Sir Rod offered live on TV to pay for up to 20 hospital scans after patients spoke about experiencing long waiting lists in the NHS.

The 78-year-old singer-songwriter, who lives in Harlow, Essex, phoned into Sky News on the channel's “Your Say” segment, which covered people sharing their experience of health care, in an unscheduled appearance.

Sir Rod said he had attended a private clinic on Thursday that was basically “empty” and was prompted to call in to the show after hearing about the “ridiculous” situation in the NHS.

“There are people dying because they cannot get scans,” Sir Rod said.

On a visit to the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow this morning, the Labour Leader Sir Keir Starmer welcomed the comments made by the singer.

"I'll go along for a sing-a-long with Rod Stewart and thank him for his words yesterday" he told ITV News Anglia.

"I think he actually reflected a mood across the country which is, so much is broken and not working and I think there's a real frustration that things have been brought to this point by the Government."

"It's a general sense also that Rod picked up on which is, look this government is clapped out frankly."


It was one of the biggest news stories of our time - and it's still not over. So what did Boris Johnson know about Downing Street’s notorious parties?

With fresh revelations from our Number 10 sources, in their own words, listen to the inside story...