Former Prime Minister Liz Truss to be urged to push for Queen Elizabeth Hospital funding in King's Lynn by campaigners led by Independent councillor Jo Rust
Liz Truss is set to be urged to make use of her "new found free time" and push for an announcement on a new hospital programme for Lynn.
Campaigners have been pressuring MPs to select the town's crumbling Queen Elizabeth Hospital for funding since April 2021, and have previously been told a decision would be made this year.
Now, with the final few weeks of 2022 approaching, the Save the QEH group will head to the former Prime Minister's constituency office in Swaffham to voice their frustration over a lack of progress.
Being joined by Trades Council secretary and Independent borough councillor Jo Rust, who represents the hospital's ward, campaigners will carry clocks to Ms Truss' London Street premises this Saturday at 10am to highlight the wait-time.
Ms Truss, the South West Norfolk MP, will be asked to put pressure on Steve Barclay, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, and Helen Whately, Minister of State in the Department for Health and Social Care.
Campaigners, donning hard hats and high-visibility vests, will urge Ms Truss to make use of her "new found free time" to push for improvements at the hospital - which currently has 3,397 steel and timber support props holding up its roof.
Cllr Rust said: "It was unimaginable that when we started this campaign, in April 2021, we would still be needing to campaign nearly two years on.
"We have been told time and time again that an announcement will be made shortly, but we’re still waiting. Why?
"(Chancellor) Jeremy Hunt’s message about the new hospital programme, and the QEH’s place in it, didn’t fill me with confidence. In fact we’ve seen the Tories rip up pledge after pledge, do U-turn after U-turn and roll back on manifesto promises, so I certainly don’t trust them to fully fund a new hospital for us.
"We shouldn’t still be waiting to hear if our hospital will be on the list for funding for a new build.
"There should have been a strategy to replace hospitals which have come to the end of their shelf life, but they failed to plan for it despite being in power for 12 years. Shame on them."
Ms Truss visited the hospital last week in a bid to show her support for a new building.
A further 1,501 prop supports are set to be added in its operating theatres over an eight-month period to maximise safety.
Around this time last year, Save the QEH campaigners presented North West Norfolk MP James Wild with hundreds of letter and a signed Santa scroll asking to be on the shortlist for a new hospital.
