Lib Dems Pledge to Fight Further Powys Hospital Downgrades

The Welsh Liberal Democrats have vowed to fight reported plans to remove ward beds in almost every community hospital in Powys "to the bitter end", describing the proposals as a disgraceful attack on rural healthcare and warning the proposals could lead to hospital closures in all but name.

The party has today launched a county-wide petition demanding the proposals be scrapped and is urging residents to add their names and send a clear message that Powys will not stand by while its local hospitals are dismantled. The petition can be signed here: https://www.brlibdems.uk/saveourhospitals

According to reports, Powys Teaching Health Board is considering removing beds in Ystradgynlais, Builth Wells, Knighton, Bronllys, Welshpool, Llanidloes and Machynlleth. Only Brecon and Newtown hospitals are certain to remain, while Llandrindod Wells Hospital is also understood to be under threat.

Only Brecon and Newtown would be confirmed as safe.

If confirmed, the proposals would represent one of the biggest reductions in NHS services ever seen in Powys.

The Liberal Democrats have accused the Health Board of pursuing a failed model of decision-making that repeatedly asks rural communities to accept less while offering little reassurance that patients will receive better care elsewhere.

The party also said the previous Welsh Labour Government bears significant responsibility for the financial position the Health Board now finds itself in, failing to deliver a sustainable funding settlement for rural healthcare.

Local MP David Chadwick and Senedd Member Jane Dodds have stated that the new Plaid Cymru-led Welsh Government cannot continue the hands-off approach of hiding behind unelected health board bosses, and have called on the Welsh Health Minister to intervene directly and make clear that these closures will not proceed.

They say the new Government must now prove it truly stands up for rural Wales by taking direct responsibility for protecting local hospitals.

Powys residents already face some of the poorest access to healthcare anywhere in Wales. Local hospitals have seen services steadily downgraded over many years, residents routinely travel huge distances for treatment, and patients continue to face longer waits because cross-border referrals into England have become increasingly restricted with many people already feeling like second-class citizens when it comes to accessing NHS care.

Commenting, David Chadwick Lib Dem MP for Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe said:

"These proposals are nothing short of an outrage.

"People across Powys already feel like second-class citizens when it comes to healthcare. Services have been steadily stripped away, people are forced to travel further than almost anyone else in Wales for treatment, and patients have been left waiting longer as access to treatment across the border has been restricted.

"Now the Health Board appears ready to make matters even worse by further cutting the very hospitals our communities depend upon.

"These proposals must be stopped. We will fight them to the bitter end, alongside local residents, staff and campaigners. The people of Powys deserve better than seeing their NHS dismantled piece by piece."

Jane Dodds MS, Senedd Member for Brycheiniog Tawe Nedd and Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats said:

"Years of mismanagement and underfunding under the previous Welsh Labour Government have left our NHS in this impossible position, but that cannot become an excuse for devastating rural communities.

"The new Plaid Cymru Government now faces an important test. Ministers must finally accept responsibility for the decisions being made in our NHS, not continue to hide behind unelected officials.

"The Health Minister must intervene directly and stop these cuts before lasting damage is done. If this Government truly believes rural Wales matters, now is the time to prove it."

Llanidloes County Councillor Glyn Preston added:

"These hospitals are a lifeline for our communities spread across one of the largest and most rural counties in Britain.

"Cutting them would be an appalling decision that would force vulnerable people to travel even further, place greater pressure on families and carers, and pile more demand onto an already overstretched social care system.

"People in Powys are tired of being told to accept less than everyone else. We will stand shoulder to shoulder with every community threatened by these closures and fight to protect the local hospitals that our county depends upon.

"Plaid Cymru promised a rural premium for our public services before they came to power, now is the time to enact it."

ENDS