Campaigners call for new A&E unit

A decision on the future of hospital services in Dover is expected in August

Campaigners for a new emergency unit at a Kent hospital have delivered a 28,000-name petition to Downing Street.

They want a 24-hour A&E department to replace the minor injuries unit at Buckland Hospital in Dover.

Patients seeking emergency treatment currently travel to William Harvey Hospital in Ashford or the Kent and Canterbury Hospital in Canterbury.

Councillor David Hannant, representing the campaign, said Dover residents needed a local service.

"This is the biggest and most effective petition we've ever done in this town," he said.

"The distance to William Harvey in Ashford is 22 miles. That is a load of nonsense.

"We must have our own services locally, they don't have to be a major general hospital but they need to be a facility that we can use."

Eastern and Coastal Kent Primary Care Trust (PCT) is expected to make a decision about the future of hospital services in Dover by the end of August.