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Fleetwood: MP tries to evade hospital campaigners
A petition of 1,600 signatures calling for Fleetwood hospital to remain open was handed to Tory MP Eric Ollerenshaw on Friday at the North Euston Hotel in Fleetwood. This was in spite of the MP's office ringing me before the meeting to tell me the venue had changed. It was only by going back to the Euston after the deadline that we met the MP!
On 13 March 2012 Eric Ollerenshaw MP 'sold' Fleetwood hospital when he voted for the health Act designed to privatise and run down hospital care, so any excuse can only be paramount to crocodile tears.
The fact that the venue was changed so close to the time of the meeting, which turned out to be wrong, can only be seen as a deliberate attempt to duck and dive the issue, much to the disgust of those people who turned up and had to go home again! Despite Eric Ollerenshaw's apologies, this sort of tactic is unacceptable, but expected, and did not stop us presenting the petition.
People are angry at the closure of Rossall hospital and the broken promises to the town, and now people are upset and angry that treatment they got at Fleetwood hospital has been taken away. The cost of getting to Blackpool for basic treatment has affected a lot of disabled people as we are constantly reminded of on our weekly street stall. Only TUSC election candidates are willing to fight and oppose these evil cuts brought about because of fat-cat greed and squandering of taxpayers' money.
Ray Smith
This version of this article was first posted on the Socialist Party website on 3 February 2014 and may vary slightly from the version subsequently printed in The Socialist.
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