Pendle MP, Gordon Prentice is dismayed that health bosses failed to make a decision last week about the future of the proposed new Health Centre in Colne

Mr Prentice said ‘The £10 million project has been talked about since 2006. But long delays were forced onto East Lancashire Primary Care Trust by Pendle Council, who originally wanted the centre to be built on the steeply sloping old Kippax site along Dockray Street.

‘I am very disappointed at this lack of progress from last Thursday’s PCT Board meeting. I have met Steve Spoerry, the Chief Executive of the East Lancashire PCT, a number of times and when we last met at the end of January I was assured that a decision on the Colne Health Centre would be made by the March PCT Board meeting.

‘What is particularly galling for the residents of Colne and Pendle is that the Colne Health Centre was a higher priority than the Rossendale Health Centre back in 2006 when the projects were started.

‘The Rossendale Centre is being officially opened this week, to glowing reports from all sides. So the delay forced on the PCT by Pendle Council’s Lib Dems has cost the people of Colne very dearly.’

‘The Kwik-Save site on Craddock Street has been bought by the PCT but it stands idle, despite a PCT Board report confirming that “for functional suitability Colne scores lowest” - that means, the current Health Centre is bursting at the seams!’

The MP added:  “I am not trying to scoring cheap political points when I say the project was derailed by the inability of the Lib Dem administration to come to a view about where the health centre should be located. But that is the unfortunate fact of life.”