POLITICAL posturing in Shropshire could affect people’s lives in Powys says a health campaigner.

Joy Jones, Powys County Councillor and anti-poverty campaigner (non-aligned – Newtown East), is concerned that a war of words between Shrewsbury and Atcham’s Conservative MP, Daniel Kawczynski, and Labour’s Telford and Wrekin Council’s leader, Cllr Shaun Davies, is putting the scheme in jeopardy.

And ultimately she fears it could cost lives on this side of Offa’s Dyke.

In January, it was announced that NHS clinical commissioners had approved the Future Fit ‘preferred option’ for the £312 million hospital revamp.

This would see have emergency care based at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital while Telford’s Princess Royal Hospital will become a ‘planned care’ site.

This was supposed to bring an end to nearly six years of consultations on the proposals.

But Telford and Wrekin council leader, Cllr Shaun Davies, has now referred the decision to the Independent Reconfiguration Panel (IRP).

The IRP could tell the UK Government health secretary, Matt Hancock, that the decision should be reviewed.

Cllr Davies has said that “he will do anything” to keep the services in Telford, while Mr Kawczynski has warned him that he is putting the whole process in jeopardy.

Cllr Joy Jones said: “It’s time we stop going round and round in circles and get on with it.

“They are always forgetting Powys and we are a massive part of this.

“If you live in Shropshire you have access to several hospital before we can get to  just Shrewsbury. And for maternity services, we already face a 100 mile round journey from here in Newtown, which has a big impact on families.

“If they remove the A&E from Shrewsbury, trauma status would also be lost.

“Patients needing critical help would have to go to Wolverhampton  as that’s where the trauma unit is – and this is such a long way from us.

“Every second counts and we could see people die.

Cllr Jones said that if a U-turn took place and the services went to Telford then it did not necessarily follow that they would receive trauma status.

This is due to its closeness to Wolverhampton.

The IRP has been gathering evidence for when it draws up its recommendations.

Mr Hancock is expected to be informed of their views in the next few weeks and he will ultimately decide.

As well as Shrewsbury’s A&E, urgent care centres operating 24/7 would be set up at both Princess Royal Hospital  and Royal Shrewsbury Hospital.