Shailesh Vara, Member of Parliament for North West Cambridgeshire, has called for the tendering process taking place at the Botolph Bridge Community Health Centre to be halted in the wake of serious concerns about how it is being carried out.

Mr Vara recently met with members of the Botolph Bridge Patient Participation Group regarding their concerns about the process and timescale being followed by NHS England's East Anglia Area Team. At present, the timetable for the exercise is due to report back with a result immediately before Christmas.

Mr Vara has written to Mr Stephen Hay, Managing Director of Provider Regulation at Monitor, expressing his concerns and has asked Mr Hay to intervene to halt the tendering process in light of the concerns. One particular issue is the timing of the process which involves crucial decisions being taken during the Christmas period, a time when people's attention will be focussed on the festive season.

Mr Vara said: -
"The Botolph Bridge Community Health Centre is one of the better performing GP surgeries in Peterborough with an excellent rate of patient satisfaction in relation to the services it provides.
From both the recent meeting and the subsequent correspondence that has been passed to me, it is clear that serious concerns are being raised by the PPG regarding flaws in how this tendering process is being carried out.

"Due to the severity of these allegations, I think it is vital that the current process is halted so that there is time for these concerns to be properly addressed and to ensure that the correct and proper procedure is being followed in this case."

Geoff Catlin, Acting Vice Chairman of the PPG commented:
"Patients have been continually ignored or bypassed throughout, in what we believe to be a seriously flawed process and one which has been continually subject to delay by this NHS Authority.

The PPG has now submitted comprehensive detailed formal complaints to the main board of directors of NHS England and a referral to the NHS Regulator, Monitor, outlining many breaches of professional conduct and procedural issues which are totally out of line with the ethos of the NHS."