ANGRY Thurrock councillors say borough residents have been "lied to and conned" after it was officially confirmed two health care centres promised seven years ago will not now go ahead.

The official announcement to members of Thurrock Council's health and wellbeing overview and scrutiny committee was made on Thursday (12 January) - though the news about the proposed Tilbury and Purfleet integrated medical centres had long been anticipated.

Four centres were originally proposed by the NHS when the scheme, which became a flagship policy for the Conservative-run council, was outlined in 2017. Thurrock Community Hospital on Long Lane in Grays was supposed to host one of them, but those plans have been massively downsized - leaving just one, in Corringham, which has been built.

The failure belies years of promises and pledges to people in Thurrock by the regional NHS and local Conservatives. Thurrock MP Dame Jackie Doyle-Price has been an ardent supporter of the plan and former Health Minister Jeremy Hunt visited Tilbury, where he met prominent local Conservative councillors, to boast about the merits of the proposal.

In 2018 Ms Doyle-Price said: "The decision to close Orsett Hospital and relocate its services to new health centres in the community is one that has been taken by the NHS. It is supported by our local NHS leaders who all believe that this is in the best interest of patients. I feel very strongly that clinicians are better placed than I or any other politician to decide what is best for patients. For that reason, I am supporting the decision made by the NHS.

"I understand that many people will be anxious about this decision. I cannot emphasise strongly enough that all NHS providers have pledged that they will continue to run their services at Orsett until they are able to relocate them in the new facilities. Until that time Orsett will remain open. Put simply, no new services – no closure.

Jackie Doyle-Price's 2018 statement.

"The facilities at Orsett no longer meet appropriate clinical standards. I have spent a lot of time there over the last couple of years and it really is time that the people of Thurrock were able to use modern facilities and for staff to work in better conditions. It will be to the benefit of patients across Thurrock that new facilities will be located closer to where people live. The new centres will be located at Corringham, at TIlbury, at Purfleet and at Grays."

Today, those words, which were echoed when Mr Hunt visited Tilbury two years later, now sound hollow.

At Thursday's meeting councillors were told the schemes at Tilbury, where Thurrock Council has already demolished the former fire station and community resource centre to build the new medical centre, and Purfleet have been rejected by the NHS because their business plans 'don't stack up'.

The scheme is linked to the proposed closure of Orsett Hospital - which would only happen, said the Mid and South Essex Hospitals Trust which runs it - on completion of the four new centres and the relocation of all current services hosted at Orsett across the borough.

However, the situation is now compounded by the continually declining state of buildings at Orsett Hospital. If it were to be brought up to a suitable standard to redress maintenance failures, the cost would be in excess of £14 million. Repairs to remedy urgent safety risks would cost more than £4 million alone.

Kim James, chair of Thurrock Healthwatch, the independent 'champion' for people who use health and social care services in Thurrock, spoke at Thursday's meeting and said: "There are not many of us here who were there at the beginning.

"In 2015 in Tilbury we were told, build it and they will come, meaning doctors and nurses. So that started and there was a whole room of the public who have sat on that, believing this is coming.

"I've been put there talking to people and over the years I have been asked to do pieces of work about the closure of Orsett, which has meant we have needed to put our tin hats on because we were seen as not that independent person that was about to start doing that work.

"People still talk about the Hogg Lane promise, that community hospital!

Kim James. right, address the committee with her emotive message about the betrayal of the people of Thurrock

"Some of those meetings that I have sat in over those years, the amount of money that has been spent on these IMCs must be colossal. There have been architects, there have been plans, there have been drawings. That's all gone back and there have been more plans.

"There have been project managers hand over fist. People have been paid a colossal amount of money to have sat there and decided how much space they have wanted in this one, how much space they have wanted in that one.

"It's a shame this all comes to this in the end.

"But the thing is, people out there need something. And they need to be involved in whatever is next.

"They need to be part of the plan. Somebody needs to be really honest and stand up and say 'Look guys, we know you were going to get this, but you are not getting it now and this is the reason'.

"The majority of people out there now truly believe that the reason they are not getting the IMCs is because of the troubles and financial situation that the council is in.

"They are not even looking at the NHS, that it is their fault in any way shape or form.

"They are going to get nothing - and the sad thing is, most of them expected it anyway."

Aside from Ms James, Thursday evening's protracted meeting brought a range of opinions to the fore.

After councillors had expressed their views, with a consensus damning the failure of the IMC project, Cllr Mark Hooper, chairman of the committee, attempted to bring the debate to an end with his summary but he was citicised by Conservative members for bringing politics into the equation.

Cllr Hooper said: "I can't say how disappointed I am to hear this news. This has been planned for seven years and we are not getting the integrated medical centres originally planned.

"I just can't let this go. I think people need to be held to account.

"I think we have been lied to, conned, and I think Orsett Hospital is in a really sad state, which I think is unacceptable.

"Back in 2017 the Tory party promised these four integrated medical centres before they would close Orsett Hospital.

"The only one that is open is the one in Corringham.

"But there seems to be a complete lack of scrutiny and planning by a number of different people in terms of ensuring that we are in a place to have these centres delivered.

"Politicians stood up and said that these centres would be delivered, but the people of Thurrock have been lied to.

"There's a pattern here, a pattern of lack of scrutiny in terms of any plans that we want to develop in Thurrock.

"The financial disaster of this council is, in my view, down to a lack of scrutiny. That, in itself, has put in jeopardy any capital funding that may have been available for the Tilbury site.

"There has been poor scrutiny around Stanford-le-Hope train station, the development of the A13 and the massive overspend on that. From my point of view this is a Tory failure, as well as a health failure.

"I will continue to work in partnership with all parties to get the best possible deal for the people of Thurrock. I will work with the portfolio holder and other members of this committee to make sure we get the best possible deal but I really feel that I could not sit back and say nothing today because the people of Thurrock have been conned and lied to."

"I think people need to be held to account. We've been lied to, misled, conned and Orsett Hospital is in a really sad state of repairs, which is unacceptable. Politicians said these centres would be delivered but the people of Thurrock have been lied to."

Cllr Hooper immediately came under fire from Tory members on the committee.

Differing opinions: From left - Cllrs George Polley, James Thandi, Terry Piccolo, Tony Fish and Neil Speight.

Cllr Terry Piccolo said: "I am a bit concerned about the comments you have just made. A lot of them are not about health and well-being, which this committee is about.

"I know it's coming up to May, but I think it was more of a political statement than anything to do with health and wellbeing and I must admit that surprises me a bit because I hold you in quite high regard.

"Some of the things that were said tonight were about seven years ago. It wasn't Conservatives who pushed through the integrated medical centres, it was the NHS.

"We may have been in support of it at the time, but so were the other local parties as well. It wasn't us that pushed them through. I am disappointed that you possibly used the wrong time to make some of the statements you made."

Cllr Hooper responded by saying: "I have the greatest respect for you, but we have dragged our heels on this for seven years and the people of Thurrock have paid the price."

Tory councillor Georgette Polly then echoed Cllr Piccolo's comments, saying: "I take overview and scrutiny very seriously, up to tonight, I have always been proud to be a member of HOSC (Health overview and scrutiny) and Corporate overview and scrutiny because I believe that is where we come together collaboratively to the best interest of the people of Thurrock.

"We can't be an effective scrutiny body if we openly declare our conscious or unconscious bias. It shows a mind that is closed.

"I do feel the comments that you have made tonight have left a nasty taste on our community.

"When we have witnesses that come forward and have spent four hours in our company, being prepared to being challenged on their role and their work, to be subject to a statement about things that are not within the remit of this scrutiny committee, I'm disappointed and I want to put that on record."

Cllr James Thandi said: "This is not political. Kim (James) has made it clear we have been shafted by the NHS. The NHS is the reason why we are not getting the IMCs, nothing to do with the council, clearly."

Cllr Hooper thanked the Tory members for their comment and added: "I stand by what I had to say."

Cllr Speight sprang to Cllr Hooper's defence, saying he did so, 'not because I support his political opinion but because I believe he was speaking facts'.

He added: "The simple fact is this has all happened under a particular administration over a number of years. And that is a fact. If the chair of this meeting, irrespective of whatever political colour he is, is going to be criticised for saying facts, then you can forget about overview and scrutiny."

Labour's Cllr Tony Fish said: "I support what the chair said because we are here to hold people to account. And I think that it is valid comment that he has made in terms of scrutiny."

Former health portfolio holder Cllr James Halden and then renegenration portfolio holder Mark Coxshall were feature in a local Tory group press release extolling the virtue of the scheme following the visit of Jeremy Hunt in 2020.

Councillors heard healthcare teams would continue looking to provide a range of services in "void" buildings around the borough. Orsett Hospital would continue to offer servcies but its buildings need a £4million upgrade just to bring it up to a safe standard and there was concern over where the money would come from.

Cllr Speight said he was "incandescent" that the IMC scheme, for years lauded by the NHS and Conservative politicians, had been dropped.

He said: "We have to have an inquest into what has gone on. It's a massive failure and an example of politicians lying to the people of Thurrock. I think as a council we should be calling for public inquiry into what has gone on.

"Orsett Hospital is high risk and to get rid of that risk it's going to cost £4.118million.

"We know that Orsett Hospital is still going to be functioning in four to five years so at the very least the NHS or the Government, by way of an apology to the people of Thurrock, is to write a cheque for £4.118million so those high risk problems can be fixed."