Burstow joins bed-push from St Helier to Epsom

12.00.00am GMT Tue 8th May 2007

Paul Burstow, MP for Sutton and Cheam, joined a team of Hospital staff in their bid to push a Hospital bed from St Helier to Epsom last Saturday, to raise awareness of the crisis facing the Trust.

Mr Burstow - who has been leading the Save Our St Helier campaign - joined a team of over 20 staff and hospital supporters as they pushed the bed through Sutton and Cheam and on to Epsom Hospital. The team were sent on their way by a large crowd of hospital staff and supporters at St Helier and met at the halfway point outside Nonsuch Mansion by another crowd.

Epsom and St Helier Hospital Trust recently released revised figures showing that it needed to save over £40 million over the next 18 months. The Trust has already announced plans to cut 1 in 4 beds and to axe 10% of hospital jobs.

Mr Burstow spoke after Saturday's bed push:

"Behind this fun event is a serious point. The future of our local hospital is at stake."

"The kind of cuts which hospital bosses are trying to force through at St Helier are putting patients at risk and driving staff morale through the floor - our aim was to use this opportunity to raise public awareness about the threat faced by their health services."

"The support we received from staff at St Helier shows the serious concerns they have for the future of the hospital and the services it offers."