A patients' watchdog is challenging moves to close two community hospitals in Oxfordshire and cut beds at others.

The Community Heath Council will appeal directly to the Government if the health authority formally agrees on Wednesday to close Burford and Watlington hospitals.

Its letter to Health Secretary Frank Dobson would start a formal process that would stop Oxfordshire Health Authority making any permanent changes until the outcome of a Government review.

Penny Thewlis, chief officer of Oxfordshire CHC, said: "We're still in a slight state of suspended animation because the health authority has not taken a formal decision.

"If the recommendations we've seen in this paper are not significantly changed, we would want to take the next step and go to the Secretary of State. Members are very unhappy with the colossal reduction in beds."

She said the major ground for opposing the closure was the "absolutely overwhelming opposition", which was not merely a groundswell of opinion against change.

She added: "There was a huge amount of thought in people's presentations.

She added: "We would also challenge them because the proposals to us were about cutting services. We were told we had a cash-strapped authority that had to make cuts. We now have an injection of new money into the health service. It's our recommendation that any new money should be used not just to maintain community hospitals, but to develop them so more care is offered to people closer to their homes."

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