MPs take Cornwall hospital funding crisis to the top

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Mon 19th Jun 2006

Cornwall's five Liberal Democrat MPs are calling for an urgent meeting with the Health Minister to discuss fears of further substantial cuts in staff, wards and facilities after the Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust adjusted their deficit upward to £15.7m.

Minister of State for Delivery and Quality, Andy Burnham MP, will be called upon to meet the MPs to discuss the future funding of hospital and other NHS services in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

The region does not have a wide range of health facilities or easy access to emergency treatment that other parts of the country take for granted. The five MPs are calling for fair funding for health services in Cornwall after the Government's failure to recognise and meet the County's needs.

In a recent House of Commons debate, the Secretary of State, Rt. Hon Patricia Hewitt MP, insisted that affluent areas which were reporting deficits should not be bailed out by poorer areas which had managed to generate a balance or even a surplus.

The Secretary of State was challenged by the MP for the West Cornwall and Isles of Scilly constituency of St Ives, Andrew George, who pointed out that Cornwall is the poorest region in the country but is reporting one of the largest deficits.

The Secretary of State failed to acknowledge responsibility for the poor state of NHS finances in Cornwall but suggested that the problems could be overcome with better management.

Falmouth and Camborne MP, Julia Goldsworthy, said:

"The Secretary of State for Health clearly doesn't understand the problems causing this alarmingly high budget deficit. We would like to meet with the Minister responsible, as a matter of urgency, in order to explain how unfair the funding formula is and to discuss ways to improve NHS funding in the future. It has already been announced that jobs will be lost and wards will close at Treliske. An increased deficit will simply make matters worse".

Andrew George added;

"Cornwall and Scilly are geographically out on a limb. The Government now seems to be happy to leave our health services to hang out to dry. Ministers must accept that their funding formula should reflect the geographical challenges of providing a range of specialties and emergency services in a long thin peninsula with many remote communities. I don't see why Cornish folk should be penalised simply because they have tolerated the lowest wages in the country since records began".