Julia Lopez, MP for the Hornchurch & Upminster constituency, is continuing her campaign to get a £35 million redevelopment of Queen's A&E as the Romford hospital struggles with demand.
Mrs Lopez recently pressed Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, to fund the remodelling during questions in the House of Commons. She followed up with representations to Health Minister, Karin Smyth, who will get to decide which capital funding projects get the go-ahead.
Smyth replied that a public consultation might now be needed for any plan to move forward, so Mrs Lopez has written to North East London Integrated Care Board (ICB) and Queen’s Hospital encouraging them to provide the Department for Health with whatever information is needed to get the critical project over the line for her constituents.
The A&E remodel is only possible after space was freed up following the delivery of the new St George’s NHS Hub in Hornchurch, something that Mrs Lopez got delivered under the last government.
Julia said:
“We have secured better community care for constituents via the St George’s Hub. Now I’m putting all my team’s efforts into delivering an improved A&E at Queen’s. Emergency care is something that constantly comes up in constituents’ complaints. The A&E department at Queen's, originally built to accommodate 325 patients a day, now regularly sees more than double that number. We’ve got to get this critical project delivered”
The campaign has garnered significant support from MPs across the region, with Julia Lopez leading efforts to engage with government officials and the public. Mrs Lopez has also called for detailed modelling to demonstrate how the project would impact A&E waiting times, ambulance handover times, and the pressure on places like King George's Hospital.
