Rightwing Madrid government rejects huge healthcare protest as a ‘failure’

Populist leader of regional authority accuses opposition of dirty tricks' after at least 200,000 take to streets

Madrid's rightwing regional government has sought to dismiss a huge protest against its healthcare policies that brought at least 200,000 people on to the streets of the Spanish capital as a failure", and accused opposition parties of using dirty tricks" to exploit fears over the public health system.

Sunday's protest, coordinated by neighbourhood groups, medical unions and leftwing political parties, was held to defend public healthcare against creeping privatisation and to express concern over the regional government's restructuring of the primary care system.