A Merseyside MP has started a petition calling for "vital" hospital services to be returned to the area.
MP Damien Moore is campaigning for the return of a children’s A&E in Southport after the service was axed in 2003. Mr Moore has said it is "unacceptable" families within his constituency must travel 45 minutes to Liverpool to be seen in an emergency.
A children's A&E department remains open at Ormskirk District General Hospital but closes at midnight.
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In a post on Facebook Merseyside's only Conservative MP said that the "thousands" of people who visit Southport Hospital deserve the "highest level of healthcare". According to the post, Health Minister Thérèse Coffey will soon convene a meeting of "key parties" to restart talks on the return of the service.
Mr Moore is now calling on local residents who "care about children's health care" to sign his petition at this "critical juncture" in the bid to bring back a children’s A&E service to Southport.
A post on Mr Moores's Facebook page said: "Southport needs a children’s A&E, and our town’s residents can help make it happen. This is why I’m launching a petition to support the return of this vital service, and I’m asking residents across Southport to take 30 seconds and add their names.
"The children and families of our town, alongside the thousands of people who visit here every week, deserve to be supported with the highest level of healthcare, 24/7. It is unacceptable that a child requiring emergency care between midnight and 8am must travel over 45 minutes to Liverpool for treatment.
"It’s great news that the Health Minister will soon convene a meeting of key parties to re-start talks on the return of the service, which was lost in 2003 at the direction of the then-Labour Government. This is a fantastic development and shows that we are at a critical juncture. The more people that sign the petition, the stronger our case for the Children’s A&E becomes."
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