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Merry slams ministers for threat to Hope


9/ 3/2006

SALFORD council bosses have hit out at the government for allowing Hope Hospital's maternity services to come under fire.

Councillor John Merry, leader of Salford City Council, said: "The fact that Hope is a preferred option to have its maternity care removed seems to fly in the face of what we have been told in the past by ministers.

"Our MPs have had one meeting with the minister concerned."

Questioning the consultation process Making it Better, led by the Greater Manchester Strategic Health Authority, Cllr Merry said: "We are concerned about the consultation process which has chosen Hope as being fit to lose its maternity care. We believe it to be flawed. We have not heard any strong evidence that proves to us that this service should go."

The leader, speaking at the Children's Services and Community, Health and Social Care Scrutiny Committee meeting, added: "The consultation does not seem to have taken into account one of the most important factors - Salford is a city with high deprivation levels, an area with low car ownership. This is not the right kind of city to take maternity services away from."

Speaking after the meeting, Councillor Eddie Sheehy, lead member for health, said: "We have approached ministers to try and get this decision reversed. The criteria has been set so that Salford cannot win this argument because Hope has been taken out of the equation. The Greater Manchester Strategic Health Authority has decided from the outset that Salford is not to maintain its maternity services.

"We as a council want to be part of the decision-making process and to argue for the clinical need of the people of Salford."


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Most recent 1 of 1 user comments

   If Mr Merry stops blaming everyone else and realises he and his council are incapable of even the smallest re-generation project. Even with hundreds of thousands of pounds of cleaning up and rebuild they are not capable of saving Hope Hospital. Of course, it could be that the Land is far more valueable for re-development than it is for a hospital and it has been allowed to happen. Its happening in other areas of Salford, its a good size and shape area of land and would be worth a fortune to the council redeveloped.
J Green, Langworthy
15/03/2006 at 21:03
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