Jesse Norman, MP for Hereford and South Herefordshire has called a public meeting as he steps up the fight for Wye Valley Trust to receive more money from the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contract, on Saturday, March 16th

Jesse has issued a very strong condemnation of the 'false choice' facing the Wye Valley Trust, and vowed to fight to save Hereford Hospital. He spoke after it was revealed that Wye Valley NHS Trust could either put its services into private hands or see the Trust become the junior partner of a larger, financially stable trust. He has called a public meeting to discuss the issue for Saturday March 16th at 10.30 am at the Starlite Room, Hereford United.

He said: "The Wye Valley Trust is being pushed into a false choice by NHS chiefs who have been unwilling to grasp the real source of Hereford Hospital's financial deficit, which is the ruinously costly PFI contract, and the unfair NHS funding formula. There must be no talk of cutting or merging services in Herefordshire until both these issues are properly addressed.

"I have been fighting for the Hospital for three years now: ever since I first identified the PFI contract as the real reason for the high car parking charges at the Hospital. In 2010 I commissioned an independent study of underfunding of public services in Herefordshire, which showed a £9 million annual shortfall for the Hospital alone. Since then I have taken this issue to doctors, to the Trust board, to NHS regional and local heads, and to the Secretary of State for Health.

For the full story please see this week's Ross Gazette.