Decision on Lewisham A&E

  • London
The trust's debts are forecast to reach almost a quarter of a billion pounds by 2016. Credit: Yui Mok/PA Wire/Press Association Images

The proposed closure of emergency and maternity units at Lewisham Hospital is part of a radical plan to rescue a neighbouring NHS trust from bankruptcy.

South London Healthcare NHS Trust has debts of more than two hundred million pounds. SLHT serves a population of one million people in Bexley, Bromley and Greenwich.

It runs three large hospitals - Queen Mary's Sidcup, Queen Elizabeth Woolwich and Princess Royal University Hospital in Orpington. The rescue package was unveiled in October by a government-appointed NHS troubleshooter Matthew Kershaw.

He said: "The financial problems at SLHT are so significant that radical action is needed now, as the current situation is unsustainable."

The trust's debts are forecast to reach almost a quarter of a billion pounds by 2016.

The plan to strip Lewisham Hospital of its A&E and maternity services would be part of a wider re-organisation of health care in south east London, to save money and bankroll debt-ridden SLHT.