Air ambulance consultation should start at the end of March health minister said

Wales's Health Minister, Eluned Morgan MS said constituents would then have the opportunity to have their say on the possible re-organisation of the charity.

It was revealed last month that the air ambulance base in Welshpool will stay in place for the next three years.

However, its fate after then is still uncertain and Montgomery Member of the Senedd, Russell George questioned the Health Minister in the Senedd on Wednesday .

Last August, EMRTS Cymru – a service within the Welsh NHS – and The Welsh Air Ambulance Charity first announced plans to reconfigure their service, which included news that the base in Welshpool could close with the crew moved to north Wales.

Mr George, along with many others, have campaigned against the proposals.

Mr George said criticised the engagement process.

“My constituents want to give their views on this proposal. Engagement was supposed to start at the end of last year, and then it was January.

“Why have we had to wait several months for the formal engagement process to begin, and when do you think that my constituents will be able to formally present their views on what they think about proposals to close the base in Welshpool?”

The Health Minister said: "By the end of this this month, I hope that your constituents will have the opportunity to have their say. I know how passionately they feel about this, and I think it is important. I've been looking again to make sure that—actually, the criteria that we're looking at need to be the right criteria.”

After speaking in the Senedd, Mr George said: “I was pleased with the news that the base in Welshpool has been saved for a further three years, but people across Montgomeryshire and beyond want to ensure that it remains in perpetuity.

“The Minister this week confirmed to me that that we can now expect the engagement process to start this month. This means we can expect to have details about public meetings, and how people can present their views.

“You may have signed a petition, or already made your views known, but I want to highlight, it is vital that once this formal process starts, you must again register your view, it is important that everyone responds to the formal engagement so views are actually recorded

“Because the news last week was only a reprieve – the fight goes on to secure a base that remains in Mid Wales for decades to come.”