:00:08. > :00:12.Good evening, I'm Alice Bhandhukravi.
:00:13. > :00:14.The parents of a nine-month-old baby, Charlie Gard, say
:00:15. > :00:16.they will keep fighting to get him experimental treatment
:00:17. > :00:20.Charlie has a rare genetic condition and is being kept on life support
:00:21. > :00:23.by doctors at Great Ormond Street Hospital.
:00:24. > :00:27.The Supreme Court will hear the case next week.
:00:28. > :00:30.The High Court and the Court of Appeal have backed the hospital
:00:31. > :00:32.who say his life support should be withdrawn.
:00:33. > :00:35.Charlie Gard is fighting for his life.
:00:36. > :00:37.A rare condition has led to severe brain damage, life support,
:00:38. > :00:42.But speaking on the Victoria Derbyshire programme
:00:43. > :00:46.today his parents say he is still fighting.
:00:47. > :00:49.He is putting on weight, his hair is growing and,
:00:50. > :00:55.as I say, he is still stable and he is still fighting away.
:00:56. > :00:57.He has not done what they said he would do,
:00:58. > :01:04.After raising the money online they want to take their son
:01:05. > :01:06.to the United States for experimental treatment yet to be
:01:07. > :01:17.It's an oral medication, it's a powder that goes into his milk,
:01:18. > :01:26.And if there was an invasive treatment for a three-month period
:01:27. > :01:30.that was going to seriously harm him and is causing pain, then I don't
:01:31. > :01:34.But for consultants here at Great Ormond Street the therapy
:01:35. > :01:38.being proposed is experimental and would not help and it doesn't
:01:39. > :01:40.reverse the effects of structural brain damage and that life support
:01:41. > :01:44.is merely prolonging the process of dying for Charlie.
:01:45. > :01:48.It is for these reasons they are refusing to let him go.
:01:49. > :01:51.This conflict has played itself out in the legal system.
:01:52. > :01:53.A High Court judge and the Appeals Court have sided
:01:54. > :01:55.with the Great Ormond Street that palliative care was
:01:56. > :02:02.But next week the Supreme Court will decide if there are grounds
:02:03. > :02:10.So making this decision the court will be looking
:02:11. > :02:13.They will be looking at Charlie's right to life,
:02:14. > :02:16.it will be looking at his parents' views and their right
:02:17. > :02:21.It will also be looking at the views of his doctors
:02:22. > :02:26.This is a medication that is not going to harm him in anyway.
:02:27. > :02:29.It is widely accepted it has not got side effects, he is fit to fly,
:02:30. > :02:34.let us take our son to a hospital that wants to save his life.
:02:35. > :02:36.If the court decides against Charlie's life support
:02:37. > :02:44.is due to be turned off at midnight that day.
:02:45. > :02:47.It's a key election battleground, the future of the NHS.
:02:48. > :02:50.In a moment we'll look at what the political parties
:02:51. > :02:54.But first, what are the growing challenges
:02:55. > :03:04.This is a process that hasn't changed much over the years and nor,
:03:05. > :03:07.it seems, have the frustrations of the capital's GPs.
:03:08. > :03:11.NEWSREEL: Pathe News visit a doctor in a north London borough who shares
:03:12. > :03:15.with his two partners a large and mainly working-class practice.
:03:16. > :03:17.Fast forward to today and listen to the views
:03:18. > :03:20.of Adrian Richardson, a GP for 30 years.
:03:21. > :03:22.His Willesden practice nearly shut last year as partners
:03:23. > :03:26.left and the workload and paperwork increased.
:03:27. > :03:31.Over this period of a year these things crept up on us.
:03:32. > :03:33.It was like rolling down a hill and thinking,
:03:34. > :03:36.I can escape the ravine ahead, but the ravine is coming
:03:37. > :03:48.So we lost two partners or three partners and we also lost a number
:03:49. > :03:49.of clinical and administrative staff as well.
:03:50. > :03:51.Across London nearly half of GP practices
:03:52. > :03:54.have a doctor who will retire in the next few years.
:03:55. > :04:02.For years and years, particularly in London,
:04:03. > :04:05.they have been underfunded and just about managing.
:04:06. > :04:09.For the last two years we have seen a dramatic decline in people's
:04:10. > :04:16.morale and their willingness and ability to actually manage.
:04:17. > :04:26.If primary care is finding it hard, the battle over the future
:04:27. > :04:29.Across the capital there are a five-year plans for the future,
:04:30. > :04:29.many involve changing or closing services.
:04:30. > :04:32.We are seeing rationing and in some cases complete withdrawal
:04:33. > :04:36.of certain NHS services, Ambulance Services, A closures,
:04:37. > :04:41.And we are seeing levels of understaffing which means that
:04:42. > :04:46.wards are struggling to keep their patients safe.
:04:47. > :04:48.This protest in Hammersmith reflects many across the capital,
:04:49. > :04:54.but experts say there may be more pain to come for London's NHS.
:04:55. > :04:57.The gap between what London needs to treat its growing population
:04:58. > :05:00.who have increasing expectations and for whom we can do more
:05:01. > :05:05.The parties are all pledging additional money
:05:06. > :05:09.None of these go anywhere near closing that gap.
:05:10. > :05:22.If the money isn't forthcoming, changes to services may well be.
:05:23. > :05:25.Well, our reporter Helen Drew joins me in the studio now to
:05:26. > :05:27.talk about the NHS and inevitably the issue of money comes up.
:05:28. > :05:34.Yes. All parties are promising more money for the NHS. Independent
:05:35. > :05:38.survey say Labour is promising more than the Lib Dems and more than the
:05:39. > :05:42.Conservatives. Regiment everyone in the NHS says no one is promising
:05:43. > :05:47.enough to cope with the current funding gaps. In London alone every
:05:48. > :05:52.year ?18 billion is spent on the NHS. Health bosses say if they carry
:05:53. > :05:56.on doing everything as they are at the moment, in four years' time
:05:57. > :06:02.there will be a gap of ?4 billion in finances. That is before they have
:06:03. > :06:08.rebuilt or repaired any hospitals. It is not just about funding, is it?
:06:09. > :06:14.It is about moving things like accident and emergency. There is a
:06:15. > :06:18.campaign in south-west London. It is about moving maternity services.
:06:19. > :06:22.Clinicians will always say or provide a better service for
:06:23. > :06:26.patients. Critics will say it is only happening because of a shortage
:06:27. > :06:28.of funding. We'll be hearing more about this. It will not end when the
:06:29. > :06:32.election does. That's it for now from me,
:06:33. > :06:46.but lets find out what the weather's Today there were thunderstorms. They
:06:47. > :06:53.have gone and it is leaving a legacy of humid air. A humid start to
:06:54. > :06:57.Saturday. If you have an event, a wedding, whatever which involves the
:06:58. > :07:02.outdoors but this is the forecast you have been praying for. Still a
:07:03. > :07:06.rather closed 22 will soak in the heart of the capital. If you're
:07:07. > :07:12.stepping out Saturday evening, a fresher feel come the end of the
:07:13. > :07:17.night. Sunday, again, is shaping up to be a decent day for many areas.
:07:18. > :07:26.Perhaps cloud developing as we get on through the afternoon. A fresher
:07:27. > :07:29.feel marked by temperatures round about 20 degrees. Watch out for
:07:30. > :07:35.Monday for the starting dry and ending up wet and windy. Good
:07:36. > :07:40.evening. The weekend is upon us and actually for many places it is
:07:41. > :07:46.looking pretty good. Try whether to be had and also sunshine. There are
:07:47. > :07:49.showers in the forecast. Low pressure in the north Atlantic
:07:50. > :07:55.trying to push in fresher air behind. This weather front is
:07:56. > :08:00.pushing into East Anglia and the South East. It started to spark of
:08:01. > :08:04.some thunderstorms during the afternoon and into beeping.
:08:05. > :08:05.Torrential downpours in