Telford & Wrekin's Peoples Association have given their backing to Wrekin MP, Mark Pritchard's, Save Our Hospital Campaign.

Vic Tonks telephoned Mr Pritchard to tell him that the Association had overwhelmingly decided to back the MP's campaign because they felt Mr Pritchard's predictions about local health cuts had proved to be true and that Mr Pritchard had the energy and vision to lead the campaign to stop the cuts.

Welcoming the news, Mr Pritchard said:

Wrekin MP, Mark Pritchard, has welcomed a commitment from Tom Taylor, the new CEO of the RSH/PRH NHS Hospital Trust, that no cuts will be made to services at the Princess Royal Hospital until a complete review of services has been undertaken - followed by a full public consultation exercise, which would consult members of the public on the outcome of the review.

Mr Pritchard said:

Wrekin MP, Mark Pritchard, this week stepped up his campaign to stop cuts to local health services at the Princess Royal Hospital by launching a new campaign web site.

www.savethePRH.com goes 'live' today (Thursday) and will allow local people to show their support for the campaign to protect hospital services by filling in an on-line petition. Supporters will also be able to choose to receive regular updates about the progress of the campaign via e-mails and e-bulletins.

Mr Pritchard said:

Wrekin MP and Save Our Hospital campaigner, Mark Pritchard, has said that he is "investigating" claims made this week by a leading hospital Consultant that local hospital chiefs allegedly provided a "misleading" and "inaccurate" report to health auditors in order to justify the future downgrading, or even closure, of Accident and Emergency services at the Princess Royal Hospital.

Over the last three years I have consistently warned about threats to local hospital services; in particular, paediatric and children's services being cut, and the implications for the Princess Royal Hospital retaining its current 24 hour 7 day a week Accident and Emergency service. My political opponents rubbished my concerns and denied that any such threats to paediatric services existed. They have been proved wrong and I have been proved right.

Newport's MP, Mark Pritchard, showed his support for Diabetes UK and local diabetes patients this week when he attended a reception at the House of Commons.

Mr Pritchard who attended the event, along with celebrity Jimmy Tarbuck and his wife, said he had close friends who suffered from diabetes and the charity to him was very close to home.

Mr Pritchard said:

"Diabetes is a condition which is affecting more and more people. The key is not only to improve access to treatment and local care but also to educate people on how to reduce the risk of becoming another sufferer".

Wrekin MP, Mark Pritchard, has held an emergency meeting with the Acting Chief Executive of the Princess Royal Hospital, Graham Smith, to protest at proposals to cut local paediatric and children's services.

Wrekin MP, Mark Pritchard, has claimed that unless the government provides "urgent funds" to the Princess Royal Hospital the number of local patients receiving treatment in Shrewsbury, Walsall and North Staffordshire is likely to continue.

Mr Pritchard made his comments after revelations that the Hospital Trust is £30m in the red an additional £11 than first feared and is fighting to balance its books without cuts to frontline services.

Mr Pritchard said:

Kidney patient campaigners are celebrating after the Staffordshire and Shropshire Strategic Health Authority finally agreed to release £500,000 of capital funding to build a temporary renal unit, which will treat up to 26 patients at the Princess Royal Hospital.

Mark Pritchard MP, who has campaigned for a renal unit at the Princess Royal Hospital and who wrote to the Strategic Health Authority, protesting at the delay in releasing the capital funding said:

Hospital operations are being cancelled, often with little or short notice, "due to staff shortages". These new revelations do not come from local politicians or local patient groups but from the hospital itself. The Journal has seen evidence that some patients are being sent letters in which patients are told that hospital appointments are being cancelled because of the hospital's shortage of staff.