"At last there is some light at the end of the tunnel: Jane Hutt has said that on-site beds must be considered for new Tenby hospital."

Years of campaigning by local AM Christine Gwyther and other local campaigners are paying off with a commitment by health minister Jane Hutt that on-site beds must be considered for the new hospital being built in Tenby.

The latest strand in the campaign has been a community survey, including a letter by Christine delivered to residents, shops and post offices in south-east Pembrokeshire.

Speaking from the Assembly, Christine said: "It has certainly been a long haul, but the reaction to the survey has been overwhelming. I have received approximately 2,500 letters of support for on-site beds at Tenby. This sort of consensus is unparalleled in community surveys. I have never seen such support for a local issue and I would like to thank everyone who has campaigned in Tenby, especially Mrs. Powell, who gave up her business slot on the front page of the Tenby Observer to promote the cause.

"The people of south-east Pembrokeshire can't all be wrong, and I have made this crystal clear to the minister in a series of meetings. Now, at long last there is some light at the end of the tunnel. Health minister Jane Hutt has said that on-site beds must be considered for the new Tenby hospital.

"To everyone who has not yet written to me on this issue, slips are available from post offices and shops in south-east Pembrokeshire, as well as doctors' surgeries and the De Valence. Please keep the letters coming; we are wearing away the intransigence of the Pembrokeshire NHS Trust."