THE CLINICAL lead for Future Fit said he felt “insulted” after the consultation was dubbed bogus.

Dr Julian Povey, the chairman of Shropshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) was criticised for his role in the process by Defend Our NHS campaigners at a meeting on July 2.

They described the current consultation into the shake-up of emergency care across Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin, and mid Wales, as “managed consent”.

But Dr Povey responded: “I find that insulting. I have spent my whole career in the NHS looking after people.

“I see my role as chairman as a way of ensuring there is clinical influence, to get the best we can for patients in Shropshire, and to try to remove inequities we have in Shropshire.

“I take offence at the suggestion I am taking part in a sham.”

Andrew Tapp, senior clinician at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals (SaTH) Trust, told campaigners that the NHS was under pressure, commenting: “Staying as we are creates harm.

“At the moment we cannot function effectively and staying still is a dangerous thing to do.

“The health service I work in now has no relationship to the service I joined,” he added.

Members of the public at the Gobowen, Selattyn, Weston Rhyn and St Martins Local Joint Committee (LJC) meeting raised their own concerns over Future Fit.

One of the recurring themes was transport and led to Dr Tapp calling on patients to raise their concerns through the consultation.

He said: “Travel and transport is key in Future Fit. This is something we must task the CCG and its partners to tackle and I would encourage people to raise this as a primary issue as part of the consultation.”

The Future Fit consultation is on whether emergency care should be based at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital with planned care at the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, or emergency care at the PRH with planned care at the RSH.

It runs until September 4.