Government considering review of NHS recruitment in Cumbria

Prime Minister Theresa May sits with year six pupils and Conservative Party candidate for the Copeland by-election, Trudy Harrison. Credit: Jack Hill/The Times/PA Wire/PA Images

The Government is considering a professionally-led review of the recruitment and retention of doctors in west Cumbria, amid plans to downgrade key services at the West Cumberland Hospital in Whitehaven.

Prime Minister Theresa May announced the move as she visited Copeland ahead of next week's crucial by-election, and also accused Labour of "scaremongering" over local NHS services.

The Government-appointed Success Regime has recommended consultant-led maternity services at West Cumberland Hospital in Whitehaven should be transferred to Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle, some 40 miles away.

West Cumberland's intensive care unit would also be smaller and all those suffering strokes would be initially treated in Carlisle under the proposals.

Campaigners have said the measures would put the lives of mothers and babies at risk.

Services at the West Cumberland Hospital could be downgraded further. Credit: ITV Border

The Tory by-election candidate, Trudy Harrison, gave birth to her four daughters in Whitehaven and is against the plans.

Mrs May said:

Claims the number of beds at Keswick Hospital are being cut were also unfounded, added Mrs May, and the preferred option was to increase them.

Labour has focused on health as its key campaigning topic in the by-election with its candidate, former hospital doctor Gillian Troughton, arguing NHS services and funding in Copeland would be "decimated" by the Tories.

They have pointed to the Prime Minister's previous statement that there is a "general consensus" among clinicians that maternity services should be downgraded at the West Cumberland Hospital.

On Wednesday, Mrs May visited Mrs Harrison's home village of Bootle and dropped in at Captain Shaw's CE Primary School where Year Six pupils showed off their award-winning Lego robot made as part of the First Lego League competition.

Jamie Reed, the former Labour MP for the Copeland seat, prompted the by-election when he resigned to take up a position at the Sellafield nuclear processing plant.

He held Copeland with 16,750 votes (42%) in 2015, ahead of the Conservatives on 14,186 (36%), Ukip on 6,148 (15%) and the Liberal Democrats on 1,368 (3%).

A hustings is being held in the constituency later which is expected to feature questions from nuclear workers and their families about the future of the planned Moorside nuclear power plant.