Farron attacks Health Secretary's 'personal NHS' claim

Local MP Tim Farron has today criticised the Secretary of State for Health, Alan Johnson's promise that he will make the NHS 'more personal and user-friendly' for patients. Mr Farron points out that a personalised and user-friendly NHS will be very difficult to achieve if patients have to travel many miles to their nearest hospital.

Mr Johnson stated that the government would reshape the NHS to become "clinically led and locally driven…and in locations to suit the patient". Mr Farron attacked this claim, stating that if this was the case, the government should shelve plans to cut more services at the Westmorland General Hospital in Kendal.

Tim Farron said:

"The desire to make the NHS more personal and user friendly is laudable, but not much of the claim is based in fact, and certainly not true of our area. The service cuts at Westmorland General will mean people will have to travel much further to get hospital care, that doesn't sound very 'user-friendly' to me."