'SHEFFIELD HOUSE CONSULTATION A SHAM' - BURT

8.27.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Tue 1st Jul 2008

Local Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate, Richard Burt has condemned County Council Health Scrutiny investigations into the proposed closure of Sheffield House as a sham, saying the views of service users were not heard.

Mr Burt said a summary report of the service users' consultation was not even presented to health scrutiny committee members when they met to discuss the closure last week, but instead was posted out to councillors days later with an instruction to return any individual comments to the chairman.

"I have spoken to service users and they are understandably very upset about this. They feel that they have been treated in a shabby way and that their opinions have not been properly taken into account.

"What is the point of commissioning a survey of the opinions of service users if the meeting goes ahead without a copy of the report in front of councillors?

"It's all very well saying that individual comments can be forwarded and taken into consideration, but there has been no opportunity for committee members to discuss the report's findings together to help them reach an informed view.

"How can they gain peoples' respect when they treat them like this? It just seems as though their opinions have been devalued and not properly taken into account."