A&E Closures Fear Unites Politicians

This article on the closure of the A&E's originally appeared in the Tottenham Journal here.

"AN ALL-PARTY party pledge condemning "life-threatening" plans to axe accident and emergency services has been agreed.

A motion to oppose the North London Central NHS proposals to shut down emergency departments at The Whittington and North Middlesex hospitals was unanimously passed at a full Haringey Council meeting on Monday.

Campaigners fear the "damaging" closures would widen the health inequality gap in Haringey.

Liberal Democrat councillor Nigel Scott, who proposed the motion, said: "Longer travel times will not be acceptable and it could even be life-threatening for a hospital to move further away. We should make it clear to central government that Haringey says no before it goes any further. Any dilution of these services would be detrimental to the borough."

The Whittington Hospital in Magdala Avenue, Archway, and the North Middlesex Hospital in Sterling Way, Edmonton, could lose their 24-hour A&E departments under the reforms aimed at improving "value for money" across Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey and Islington.

Tottenham MP David Lammy and Hornsey and Wood Green MP Lynne Featherstone have both launched petitions to urge health bosses to halt the plans. Mr Lammy said: "As a father of two young children I am not prepared to gamble with the extra minutes it would take to reach the A&E departments at any of the other hospitals."

A spokesman for North Central London NHS said: "The review is still at a very early stage - options for discussion have not even been finalised by clinicians yet.

"Any proposals which are then made by clinicians will require formal consultation and further discussion with health professionals, patients and the public before final decisions are taken."