Tom Brake MP fights for locally elected Cllrs to have their say on the future of St Helier Hospital

5.11.00pm UTC (GMT +0000) Wed 22nd Nov 2006

On Monday Tom Brake MP participated in the Queens' Speech Debate covering Department for Communities and Local Government matters.

In the debate, Tom used the example of St Helier Hospital to point out that although Councillors are continuously promised more powers and responsibilities, when it comes to health matters, they actually have very few powers.

Tom said, 'In my constituency, our acute trust and the PCT may be about to close the accident and emergency department at St. Helier hospital, and there is no democratic accountability in that decision. Local councillors can perhaps review a decision but, in practice, they have no power to influence it.'

Tom Brake has campaigned heavily to keep the A+E and hospital at St Helier over the years, and has dedicated a page on his website to it, at www.tombrake.co.uk/pages/savesthelier.html. Also available on the page is a petition to sign (which has now garnered over a 1,000 signatures), and details of a large scale march organised by Tom Brake and Paul Burstow MPs and Unison in a bid of Save St Helier Hospital.

The march will start at 10:30am on 25th November, at Rosehill Recreation Ground next to the Sutton Junior Tennis Centre. The march will follow a pre-defined route before a series of speeches on the future of the hospital will take place.

If you would like to help Tom Brake save St Helier, please do not hesitate to sign the online petition, write to Patricia Hewitt or join the march on Saturday morning. For further details please contact Tom Brake's constituency office on 8255 8155.