Bedfordshire health board halts plans for new GP and care hubs

A decision to drop plans to build GP and health care hubs in a growing area have been criticised by an MP.

The new facilities were due to be built in Leighton Buzzard, Houghton Regis, and the Ampthill and Flitwick areas by Bedfordshire Luton and Milton Keynes (BLMK) Integrated Care Board.

Andrew Selous, Conservative MP for South West Bedfordshire, said it had left him "upset" and more places for doctors to work were "desperately needed".

The board said it would continue to work with health care partners to "develop proposals", but it was "not affordable" to progress the plans.

Mr Selous said the Central Bedfordshire area was "growing massively".

"I've got 14,000 new homes we have an increase in general practice capacity," he said.

"There are 4,000 doctors who qualified last year, trained to be GPs, they can't work on the side of the road.

"This is unbelievably awful and I'm very upset about it.

"I want a change of heart."

Steve Owen, a Liberal Democrat councillor on Leighton-Linslade Town Council, said: "Thousands of new houses have been built, thousands of residents have occupied them and they were told they're getting a GP surgery and they haven't got it."

Three current surgeries were "bursting", he added, but "you cannot cram more doctors and nurses into those".

The board said: "We are continuing to work with health and care partners to develop proposals for integrated health and care hubs.

"We are also working with three GP practices in Leighton Buzzard and other health and care partners to develop a plan to outline how care is delivered for residents in Leighton Buzzard."