A PETITION signed by more than 1,200 residents, calling for assurances on the future of the new East Lothian Community Hospital, has been presented to the NHS.

Iain Gray, the Scottish Labour candidate for East Lothian in next week’s Holyrood elections, created the petition earlier this year after growing frustrated at what he saw as a lack of progress over the project.

The £72 million scheme, which will be based on the site of Haddington’s Roodlands Hospital, was given planning permission by East Lothian Council’s planning committee last month.

NHS officials have stressed the timeline for completion of the new hospital remains “unchanged”.

Talks about the new hospital, which will not feature an accident and emergency or minor injuries departments, have been ongoing for years and Mr Gray was keen to see no further slippage.

He said: “The planned completion date is now 2019, 10 years late, and the business case which should have been agreed with ministers already has been further delayed until after the election.

“Perhaps that is because the NHS board are now trying to cut back the plans to save money. At the moment, Roodlands carries out day surgery under both local and general anaesthetic. Staff were told that it had been decided the new hospital would not do general anaesthesia and so residents would instead have to travel to the Royal Infirmary or even further.

“Having provoked a negative reaction, not least from some of the surgeons involved, the board then backtracked to a ‘consultation’.

“But they do not need a consultation to know that local people do not want this reduction in service.

“Meanwhile, they have also come up with the idea of cutting the number of beds planned for the new hospital by 20: a significant proportion of the beds in the plan.”

The new hospital will have 132 beds in six wards, as well as 12 additional day beds.

Facilities include outpatients, diagnostics, pharmacy, shared therapies, day care, mental health ward, inpatient continuing care ward, four sub-acute patient wards supporting rehabilitation and care of the elderly services, and a day surgery unit. A total of 425 car parking spaces will be included.

David Small, chief officer at East Lothian Health and Social Care Partnership, said: “This project continues to progress and recently received planning approval from East Lothian Council.

“Our timeline for completion of the hospital remains unchanged and we hope to have our full business case submitted later this year.”