Single county A&E would be better at Shrewsbury, says health minister Philip Dunne
Health minister and Ludlow MP Philip Dunne has said he would rather see an A&E centre retained in Shrewsbury than Telford if he had to choose.
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Speaking at a public meeting on the future of health services in south Shropshire, held at Ludlow School last night, Mr Dunne said one thing the ministerial code "is absolutely clear on" is that ministers should not have responsibility for direct decision making in the area they live in and represent.
But, he said, the upside of this was that he was free to speak his mind on local health matters.
"If we reduce to single emergency centre to provide trauma care, in my view that needs to be in Shrewsbury," he said.
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He said Telford was flanked on both sides by other possible A&E centres such as Wolverhampton or Shrewsbury itself, whereas Shrewsbury was more "appropriate" for a single A&E due to its central location in the county and the fact that it was closer for many rural residents.
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More than 200 people turned out to the long anticipated meeting, which also extend to talking about other services in the rural south, such as libraries, leisure centres and museums.
Also on the panel are Debbie Vogler, programme director of the NHS Future Fit review of health services in the county; Gill George, speaking for campaign group Shropshire Defend Our NHS; James Harris a GP and partner at Ludlow's Station Drive Surgery; Cecilia Motley, Shropshire Council's rural portfolio holder; and George Candler, director of planning, environment and culture at Shropshire Council.
