Farron: Health Secretary must set out plans for South Lakes services

MP Tim Farron has pushed the Health Secretary to outline what NHS reforms could mean for services in the South Lakes, following a report suggesting they will be left with an £805 million funding black hole by 2021.

Tim has written to Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt to ask him to set out what will happen to vital services in the South Lakes as the NHS experiences budget cuts and restructuring. Tim has asked for clarification over what will happen to Westmorland General Hospital, as well as the future of local GP services, cancer services and mental health services.

A recent report into draft NHS Sustainability and Transformation Plans shows that by 2021 health services in Lancashire and South Cumbria will be £805m short. No plans have yet been revealed to show what this would mean for the South Lakes, but other parts of the country face the removal of services and closure of hospital wards.

Tim said: "The Health Secretary has a duty to inform the public about the government's plans, and what they will mean for the NHS in our area. Along with many local residents, I am extremely concerned about the future of local services, especially given what's been proposed elsewhere and a predicted budget black hole of over £800million in our area.

"Without proper funding, our NHS will disappear. At the moment, the government is simply not prepared to provide the funding that the NHS needs in rural areas like ours. Local people have shown time and again that they will not stand by if the government tries to remove services from our area."