Council will not donate to Lucy Allan's Future Fit crowdfunding campaign
Telford & Wrekin Council will not contribute towards a crowdfunding campaign launched by MP Lucy Allan to mount a judicial review against controversial hospital changes.
Bosses at the authority said it was actively considering legal options but that spending taxpayers' money on a judicial review was not in the public interest in a time of public sector cuts.
A judicial review would see a judge review the lawfulness of the decision-making process around Future Fit but not make any judgement on the rights and wrongs of its proposals.
The authority's leader Shaun Davies said the best outcome would be that Health Secretary Matt Hancock reverses the plans to have 24-hour A&E services based solely at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, thus ridding the need for any legal action.
Ms Allan criticised the council earlier this week, saying it had "spent many thousands" campaigning against the Future Fit plans to downgrade the town's A&E but "was not acting".
The Tory MP, who said the £3,460 raised so far has paid for the advice of a solicitor and barrister, added that a council contribution would ensure proceedings could go ahead without further requests for community funding.
"Telford & Wrekin Council has spent many thousands of pounds campaigning against the Future Fit decision and has said in the past it would consider a judicial review of the hospital management’s decision," she said.
Options
"For this reason I ask that it now makes a small contribution to the crowdfunding page, to match the funding raised by the community. Time is running out.
"I urge Telford & Wrekin Council to now put its weight behind this community endeavour, even if only in a very small way by making this small contribution."
Councillor Davies said the council was still "actively considering legal options in respect of Future Fit" and that Telford's MP and the council needed to work together to secure government intervention.
He added: "Separately we have provided some information to other legal firms.
"We remain keen to lobby the Health Secretary to reverse his decision. This would mean there is no need for a legal challenge.
"The council is aware that a judicial review is a costly and unpredictable way to resolve issues.
“At a time of public sector cuts, it’s not in the public interest for one public body to be spending money taking another to court.
"The council agrees with Lucy’s comments that the government should intervene and we would like to work with her to secure this intervention.”
