Surgeons warned today that the 83m plans to upgrade acute healthcare in Oxford could put patients at risk, writes Victoria Owen.

Clinicians at the Radcliffe Infirmary are campaigning against a move to relocate the city centre hospital's services to a new building at the John Radcliffe site, in Headington.

Led by Grant Bates, former chairman of medical staff, they believe emergency and casualty admissions at the John Radcliffe frequently override the needs of patients waiting for booked treatment known as elective surgery. They say many have operations cancelled at the last minute because there are no places for them on the wards. And they fear the problem would worsen after the relocation in 2005.

Mr Bates and his ear nose and throat colleagues would prefer to relocate to the Churchill Hospital where there are no emergency admissions.

In a letter to the Oxford Mail's sister paper, The Oxford Times, they wrote: "We have argued long and hard against this move. We fear it is ill-judged, not supported by clear medical need and likely to be detrimental to our patients." But David Highton, chairman of the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust, which oversees all three hospitals, insisted there were solid reasons to relocate Radcliffe Infirmary services to the John Radcliffe site.

He said: "The relocation process has been through proper public consultation, signed off by ministers and is well advanced.

"It's a little hard to say that people haven't been given a chance to air their views. But I would always be happy to meet the clinicians and listen to their concerns."