plugging other nhs deficits. sir bruce keogh defended the process in december 2016 saying "i think in a number of areas, will look very different. but what we have to be really careful about is that they serve the needs of patients and the local community. people are always up for change, but they fear loss, and i think that those who are proposing the change have a duty to explain to the local communities why those changes offer an improvement." organisers of a protest march in london where tens of thousands of people took part fear the sustainability transformation plans are a "smokescreen for further cuts". hospital services could be cut in nearly two thirds of england and some hospitals will be completely closed. during the march jeremy corbyn said, “there are those waiting on trolleys and those who are desperate to get into an a&e department waiting hours for treatment. it is not the fault of the staff. it is the fault of a government who have made a political choice.” corbyn also said, "the tories and the coalition before them managed to cut taxes on big business. don't let them tell you there's no money for the nhs. there's no excuse for it... the money is there if you collect the taxes properly to fund it and pay for it." len mccluskey of unite stated, hospitals, gps, mental health, ambulance and community services are on their knees". dr david wrigley of the bma said, "as a doctor i see day to day the serious pressures in the nhs due to the funding cuts from the government." there is concern that plans are being introduced hastily without evidence that they will be effective. dr mark porter of the bma said money was "wasted" and changes "rushed through without appropriate evidence". according to the local government association only 21% of councillors they surveyed in 2017 felt sufficiently engaged in their stps, and less than 25% were confident that their stp would deliver on its objectives or bring benefits to the local community. the king's fund in september 2017 described plans to cut hospital beds as ‘undesirable and unachievable’, pointing out that the uk has fewer acute beds relative to its population than almost any other comparable health system. according to sir david sloman the purpose of these plans is to focus on population health – helping people to achieve their maximum potential – rather than treating people when they get sick. legal considerations stps are not statutory organisations so any changes resulting from the plans most be implemented by their component bodies, and those bodies may be required to conduct public or staff consultations, or, in the case of foundation trusts, ballot their governors. local authorities have the power to call decisions in for scrutiny. the health and social care act 2012 provisions may also require approval of proposals from the competition and markets authority.