An NHS 'gender flag' has sparked fury among residents of Hull, as the banner was revealed at the Royal Stoke Hospital to display 21 different genders.
The banner features different sexualities and gender identities such as the Gay Pride flag, alongside a selection of lesser-known identities - such as Polysexual, Demiromantic and Genderqueer.
Speaking to GB News reporter Anna Riley, residents of Hull reacted to the controversial banner, after patients at the hospital told The Sun that the display was "woke pandering".
One resident slammed the banner and said there's "better ways to spend NHS money", whilst others were in favour of the welcome sign and said it was a "very important issue for the NHS to tackle".
NHS Royal Stoke Hospital has been criticised for 'spending money on gender flags'
X / GB News
One man told GB News: "I think it's a really good thing. I'd be happy for them to display that in my hospital."
Whilst he did acknowledge that the National Health Service should "be focused on health mostly", he said the NHS does need to "make sure it's inclusive for the entire community".
Another Hull local shared his fury with the NHS for the sign, and said they "don't think they should be focusing on LGBTQ" and instead need to focus on "how much the doctors are getting paid".
He told Anna: "They're focusing on the wrong subjects - they're trying to cure cancer, but why focus as much as they are on the LGBTQ, they're not physical illnesses."
Hull residents were divided on the NHS gender flag in Stoke's hospital
GB News
When asked how he would feel if it was displayed in his local hospital, he responded: "I probably won't say anything, but I just think it's daft."
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Speaking to GB News, another Hull local said the money the NHS is provided should be going to "science and finding medicines, more than the LGBTQ+ community".
He explained: "We've got the flag and the parade, and the LGBTQ cause is not really NHS, is it? It's not really aiming at the NHS.
"The NHS is to help people in a medical kind of way, to get them back into society from there, and also help medicine to go into a field of science, not to respond to the LGBTQ+ community."
When asked how he would feel about the banner being displayed in his local hospital, he admitted: "I would think that it don't really relate to what the NHS stands for, because we all stood out there, banging our pans and supporting Captain Tom, and we all banged them for what? For what the NHS stands for.
Some residents urged the NHS to focus on 'curing cancer'
GB News
"Because that's what the NHS stands for, it's not to do with the LGBTQ, it's an all different thing in its own sort of way."
Another resident was in favour of the banner, stating: "For LGBTQ people, they need to know they are welcome at the NHS. Whatever issues they've got, they need to know they are supported. So I don't have a problem with the NHS displaying those flags."
Jane Haire, UHNM Chief People Officer, said: "We understand that different individuals may have varying views on symbols and flags used to represent different identities.
"But this banner symbolises our commitment to achieving a more inclusive organisation where both colleagues and the people we care for are encouraged to be themselves."
