With Hywel Dda University Health Board set to make major decisions this week about the future of nine hospital services included in its ‘Clinical Services Plan’ - the people of Pembrokeshire and local politicians remain deeply worried about what these proposals could mean for Withybush Hospital.

With an Extraordinary Board due to take place on February 18 and 19, the services under review include - critical care, dermatology, emergency general surgery, endoscopy, ophthalmology, orthopaedics, stroke, radiology and urology.

Proposals have drawn mass opposition.

Independent candidate for the new Ceredigion-Penfro constituency at the Senedd, Cllr Aaron Carey says that the people of West Wales deserve ‘reliable, accessible, and modern’ healthcare.

“Year after year, communities across Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire, and Carmarthenshire are forced to fight simply to keep essential services open,” said Cllr Carey, who represents the ward of Pembroke Monkton and St Mary South as County Councillor on the Local Authority.

“Hospitals such as Bronglais in Aberystwyth and Withybush in Haverfordwest are not luxuries; they are lifelines.

“They must be maintained, strengthened, and properly resourced—not slowly run down through broken promises and misleading assurances.

“Hywel Dda University Health Board has repeatedly assured the public and democratically elected representatives that services would be protected, only to later retreat from those commitments.

“Time and again, residents have been told that no decisions have been made, that services are safe, or that changes are temporary. Too often, those words have proven hollow. This continual pattern of reassurance followed by reversal has eroded public trust and left communities feeling ignored and misled.

“We have seen promises to keep services open at Withybush, followed by plans that weaken the hospital’s future.

“We have been told that a so-called ‘super hospital’ would be built first, and only then would the future of Withybush be considered—yet the uncertainty surrounding that project has been used to justify years of drift and decline.

“Across West Wales, vital health services are failing or under severe strain: long ambulance response times, overstretched GP surgeries, reduced community services, and growing difficulties accessing timely treatment.

“Rurality cannot continue to be used as an excuse for second-class care. We must also remember what happened at South Pembrokeshire Hospital.

“Over a Christmas period, services were quietly closed down with minimal scrutiny. After a public outcry and a petition that I personally handed to the Health Board, those services were re-opened—demonstrating clearly that community pressure works.

“Yet only a few months later, they were once again quietly closed, without warning or meaningful consultation. This sequence of events speaks volumes about how decisions are being made and how little respect is shown for local voices.

“Hywel Dda Health Board does not operate in isolation. It is overseen by the Welsh Government, which has consistently fallen short of delivering true 21st-century healthcare to the people of West Wales.

“Oversight must mean more than monitoring decline; it must involve intervention, investment, and accountability. Our communities are resilient, but resilience should not be mistaken for acceptance.

“We need honesty instead of spin, genuine engagement instead of box-ticking consultations, and a clear commitment to strengthening hospitals like Bronglais and Withybush for the long term.

“West Wales deserves healthcare that is fit for the future—and we will continue to stand up until that promise is finally delivered!” he added.

Wales’ First Minister has also had her say on Hywel Dda's controversial Clinical Services Plan.

Eluned Morgan, who is also a Labour MS for Mid and West Wales, was asked last week about the controversial plans to change clinical services across the Hywel Dda region of Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion by Preseli Pembrokeshire Senedd Member, Paul Davies.

At the plenary meeting, Mr Davies said: "The main priority for the Welsh Government should be safeguarding and protecting services at Withybush Hospital, so that patients from across Preseli Pembrokeshire are not forced to travel further afield for vital and essential services.

"As you know, Hywel Dda University Health Board is considering options to transform nine clinical service areas, and some of those options will result in centralising services further afield for my constituents.

"As a co-representative of the people of Preseli Pembrokeshire, I hope you'll do everything you can to stand up for them and oppose any changes that force them to travel further for essential care and for essential services.

“So, can you tell us what representations you've made to Hywel Dda University Health Board about its clinical services plan, and will you make it clear that the Welsh Government will not support any changes that take services away from the people of Pembrokeshire?"

Eluned Morgan said in response: "I understand how strongly people feel about their local services, which is why I also have been making representations in my capacity as a Senedd Member.

"I met with the health board representatives, the chief exec and others last week, and I met and I spoke to the chair just on the weekend.

"So, I can assure you that I am ensuring that the views of the local communities are taken on board, but it will be for them to determine.

"I think it is important that what should be driving this is the best possible clinical outcomes for people.

“And let me just give you a sense of actually how investment is already happening in Withybush General Hospital: £1.18 million to replace in Withybush; £750,000 to replace x-ray equipment; £481,000 to upgrade gamma camera systems at Withybush; £110,000 to replace ultrasound equipment at Withybush; and £27 million to ensure that essential fire enforcement work has taken place, and that’s before we start talking about the significant amount of money, £12.8 million, that was put in to address the challenges around reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete.

“So, investment is going into Withybush hospital, and I hope you see there that there is plenty of evidence to demonstrate that the people of west Wales will be served.”

Hywel Dda University Health Board meet on February 18 and 19 to discuss its wide-ranging plans.