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Councils join forces on Ambulance merger appeal

West Oxfordshire District Council is writing to the Secretary of State to urge her to reconsider the recent decision to merge the current Oxfordshire-wide Ambulance Trust with Hampshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Milton Keynes and the Isle of Wight trusts.

The letter supports the one already sent by Hampshire County Council, which states that the merger consultation was flawed and that it is not in the interests of residents or the NHS in Hampshire and the
Thames Valley. A number of other councils are also supporting Hampshire's approach.

“Local people are best served by local services and rural areas already suffer from a lack of service. This
merger is not in anyone's best interests”, says Cllr Hilary Biles, Cabinet Member for Health. “

The decision to write to the Secretary of State was supported at both the Council's Overview and Scrutiny Committee and at the Cabinet meeting. Councillors had already expressed their concerns and rejected the motion for a merger during the consultation period earlier this year.

Posted : 21/07/2006 20:50:42

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