Following a highly successful campaign from the Merton Conservative Council Group and Stephen Hammond MP, Merton’s Labour-run Council have decided to abandon their plans to delay investment into St Helier Hospital.
St Helier Hospital is set to benefit from the Improving Healthcare Together programme which has seen the Government invest £500,000,000 into improving healthcare in our area by building a brand new emergency care hospital in Sutton and much needed regeneration of St Helier and Epsom Hospitals.
The Merton Conservative Council Group have long been supportive of the proposals. During the initial consultation period the Merton Conservative Council Group made clear that whilst it would have preferred St Helier to be the main site chosen, it supported the decision made by the NHS.
The Improving Healthcare Together programme was designed by the NHS, and is supported by leading doctors, nurses, and clinicians. Merton’s Labour-run Council continue to oppose this - as they have done for every proposed investment package in the last 20 years. Their opposition threatened to derail the programme, but with the announcement that they are dropping their plans for a judicial review of the decision the long overdue repairs and improvements at St Helier Hospital can begin in earnest.
Following today’s decision Cllr Nick McLean, Leader of the Opposition on Merton Council, had this to say:
“St Helier Hospital is Saved. Now that the Labour have dropped their baseless plans for a judicial review, which would have delayed the programme, the people of Merton can begin seeing the benefits of a £500,000,000 investment into our local healthcare system.”
Stephen Hammond MP also welcomed the news:
“I am glad Labour-run Merton Council have finally seen sense. Their plans for a Judicial Review were always without any foundation and were always a political tactic by the Labour Party aimed at stopping this huge investment in our local healthcare.
These plans were put together by the local NHS after local consultation. They were approved by the Independent Reconfiguration Panel. This is a positive step towards the delivery of £500m of critical investment in our local NHS.
St Helier is safe and has always been so. Local residents can be certain in the knowledge that the quality of care they receive in the future will be even better than it has been in the past.”
