Telford council urged to call for another independent review of controversial hospital plans
Councillors are expected to back a call for an independent review of changes to an A&E service.
Members of Telford & Wrekin Council will this week be asked to support a motion from Labour Councillor, Andy Burford, in relation to changes planned for Princess Royal Hospital (PRH).
Under Future Fit proposals for Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and PRH the county's main A&E will be based at Shrewsbury, with the Telford hospital seeing its A&E replaced with an 'A&E Local'.
Councillor Burford describes the plan as a 'downgrade' and calls for the council to write to the health secretary demanding a review of the proposal, as well as asking for it to be referred to the Independent Reconfiguration Panel.
His motion, which will go before the council's full meeting at 6pm on Thursday, states: “This council calls on the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care to carry out an urgent review and reversal of the Government’s downgrade plan for our health and social care services and to provide the necessary resources to ensure Telford & Wrekin and Shropshire has the health and social care services that our residents deserve.
"The Government’s shambolic plans to downgrade Telford’s 24/7 A&E to a so called ‘A&E Local’ has been discredited by a number of clinical bodies and means that Telford would be the largest and growing town in England without a fully functional A&E.
"The government also still plans to move our consultant led women and children's unit from Telford, which flies in the face of recognised clinical need, the very reason why it was built in Telford."
