Million protest as surgeries make way for the polyclinics

Doctors will descend on Downing Street today to hand in a petition against the proposals, which will overhaul London's health service and lead to the closure of 100 surgeries across the capital.

The Save Our Surgery petition, signed by 1,196,000 people, has been organised by the British Medical Association in a last-ditch attempt to halt the changes.

London's 31 primary care trusts meet today and are expected to approve the plans to abolish traditional hospitals and create specialist "super-units" and 150 polyclinics.

At the same time, 400 GPs from across the country are meeting in the capital to discuss how they will be affected and members of the London-wide Local Medical Committees will hold a vote of no confidence in health minister Lord Darzi, who drew up the reforms.

A £1million consultation claimed to have found that half of Londoners backed the plans but campaigners accuse Healthcare for London, which ran the exercise, of failing to canvas enough opinion because only 5,000 people - less than one per cent of London's population - responded.

The critics claim polyclinics will lead to "privatisation" of the NHS after the US firm United Healthcare won the contract for three surgeries in Camden.

Dr Laurence Buckman, chairman of the BMA's GP committee, said: "If the Government won't listen to doctors then surely it will listen to the 1.2 million men and women who call for a halt to the plans to promote the use of commercial companies in general practice.

"Voters don't want funding to move from GP practices to commercial companies who are accountable primarily to shareholders rather than patients. They want to be treated as patients, not customers. My message to Gordon Brown is this: Whatever you think of GPs, take note of what your electorate thinks. Work with us to improve the service, not against us, and ignore at your peril the wishes of the most important people in the NHS - the patients."

Ruth Carnall, NHS London chief executive, said: "Today is D-day for the NHS in London, when decisions will be taken that will shape health in the city for years to come. There are many challenges to face, including the appalling health inequalities that mean life expectancy for people in neighbouring boroughs can be markedly different. "I believe that despite the clamour coming from the doctors' union, the BMA and others, the joint PCT committee will take its decision with the best interests of Londoners at heart. It is their big chance to build a health service that is of high quality, safe, convenient and provides patients with a real choice of care."