Campaigners are urging councillors to halt a ‘meaningless’ public consultation for a plan which could close Huddersfield’s A&E.
Calderdale and Kirklees councillors will this afternoon debate whether a consultation on the Right Care Right Time Right Place proposal is ready to be launched.
But campaigners will be outside Halifax Town Hall to persuade councillors on the Joint Health Scrutiny Panel to block the consultation and stall the proposal.
Under Right Care Right Time Right Place full emergency services at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary will be closed and transferred to Calderdale Royal Hospital, Halifax.
The campaigners believe the consultation, which could be launched today, is ‘meaningless’ and will have little bearing on the final plans.
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The panel may refer the proposal to the Independent Review Panel if they feel that due procedure has not been followed.
Local NHS campaigner and Holmfirth resident Terry Hallworth said: “The consultation document does not provide enough information for the public to be able to make up our minds about the proposed hospital developments’ value for money, or about the ownership of the new Huddersfield planned care hospital at the Acre Mill site.”
Paul Cooney, Secretary of Huddersfield Keep Our NHS Public, added: “Our health needs are for evidence-based, comprehensive, universal, equitable and value-for-money health care.
“The health care proposed in the consultation document is none of these things, as far as we can see. And we’ve looked hard.”
