HINCHINGBROOKE Hospital was high on the list of issues raised at the Liberal Democrats conference for the whole of the East of England at Hinchingbrooke Performing Arts Centre on Saturday. Local activists highlighted the widespread concern about possibl

HINCHINGBROOKE Hospital was high on the list of issues raised at the Liberal Democrats' conference for the whole of the East of England at Hinchingbrooke Performing Arts Centre on Saturday.

Local activists highlighted the widespread concern about possible service reductions at Hinchingbrooke.

"The more people I speak with, the clearer it becomes: people want good care nearer to home rather than having to travel to remote super-hospitals," local Lib Dem leader, Peter Downes, said in the debate.

The Eastern Region Liberal Democrats passed a policy motion calling on the Government to recognise the need for local delivery of services rather than increasing travel times to super-hospitals, to allow the health service a period of stability to enable it to recover financial balance, and to make control of local NHS services democratically accountable to local people.

The conference attracted members from all over the East of England, including the region's three MPs and its MEP. The keynote speaker, Ed Davey, Parliamentary spokesman for trade and industry.

This was the second successive year that this conference had been held at Hinchingbrooke Performing Arts Centre.