WATCH - Standing Up for Our Hospital

Mayor Dave Hodgson has a record of standing up for local hospital services, and has helped block proposals for a major downgrade of Bedford Hospital.

When the the NHS Healthcare Review for Bedfordshire and Milton Keynes proposed in 2016 that maternity services should be removed from Bedford, with no births at Bedford Hospital at all, Mayor Dave fought successfully alongside local residents and campaigners to stop the proposals from going ahead.

The review also openly considered plans for the removal of full A&E and children's hospital care, and again Mayor Dave helped to lead the fight to retain key hospital services locally

He stressed the importance of retaining those services in comments broadcast on the BBC Sunday Politics East programme and which you can watch on Mayor Dave's Facebook page here, where he commented:

"I lined up alongside local residents to fight the closure of these services, and I'm pleased to say that the threat has been removed as we stand today, with more work to be done to secure our hospital's long-term future.'

"Bedford Borough needs a Mayor who will stand up for our area when these challenges arise. That's what I've done over our hospital, Putnoe Walk-In Centre, our rail services and more. Don't put that at risk - please vote for me in Thursday's local elections."