One of Tenby’s county councillors has claimed that the people of Pembrokeshire have been led a ‘merry dance’ into believing that a new ‘super hospital’ could be built anytime soon within the Hywel Dda area.

Members of Pembrokeshire County Council conducted a meeting on Monday morning (July 28) with Professor Philip Kloer, the Chief Executive Officer of Hywel Dda University Health Board.

It has already been suggested at the turn of the year, that it could be 10 years or more before a much-anticipated new hospital for West Wales, serving the people of Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire is built - despite two possible sites in Whitland and St Clears being earmarked for the facility.

An original strategy published back in 2018 outlined that construction of a new hospital could be completed by 2029, with plans to repurpose Withybush Hospital in Haverfordwest and Carmarthen’s Glangwili General Hospital.

However, it was suggested at a meeting at the end of last year updating members of Hywel Dda University Health Board on latest developments, that such a date was realistically off the table.

The Health Board had previously called to the Welsh Government for a £1.3bn investment to implement the changes.

However, a report presented by the Health Board pointed towards costs of delivering the original strategy increasing due to inflation.

“You have to accept that when you’re at the business stage process that we’re at, then the new hospital is going to be at least 10 years, and maybe longer, in arriving. And so that means that our planning cannot be based on a new hospital being there,” remarked Health Board CEO Professor Kloer at the time.

Now, a meeting with Pembrokeshire County Council this week on matters, has raised even more uncertainty on the future of a new super hospital for the area, with Tenby’s Plaid Cymru county councilor for the seaside town’s north ward, Cllr Michael Williams sharing: “So now we know. After being led a merry dance over several years there will not be a new super hospital in the Hywel Dda Health Board area.

“This emerged yesterday (July 28) in answer to my question to the Chief Executive of the Health Board. I asked what budget had been identified for a scoping programe for any new hospital, and under what Welsh Government budget heading could the estimated capital cost of £1.3 Billion be found.

“The Chief Executive of the Health Board confirmed that there was no prospect of this materializing in the next ten to fifteen years due to ‘Changing economic circumstances’.

“Bearing in mind the statement of a previous Chief Executive of the Health Board that ‘existing services are unaceptable without a new hospital’ - so we will we continue with ‘unaceptable services’ over an extended period.”

Cllr Williams said that he recalls attending a meeting about eighteen months ago of the South East Pembrokeshire Community Health Network group at New Hedges village hall where assurances had been given that two sites had been clearly identified for such a building which would cost an estimated £1.3 Billion.

“Senior officers of the authorty were wheeled out with considerable aplomb to tell us that, they had now discounted one potential new hospital site and they were now considering only two sites, a major step in the direction of a new hospital. How gullible were those of us that attended this meeting, when at the end photos of those attending were asked for as if to celebrate this as a step forward?” continued Cllr Williams.

“So just when did ‘Economic circumstances’ change? The Labour Welsh Government’s First Minister announces ‘record levels of funding’ for the health service, but in fact we see health service inflation at just over 2% and Hywel Dda Health Board receiving an increase of 1.3% in its budget. So can we continue to expect a reduction in service?

“Is it any wonder that there is what can only be described as consultation fatigue when until very recently the carrot of this mythical new hospital was being dangled in front of the public?

“Once again, we witness a complete lack of any strategic vision from the Health Board together with chronic underfunding of our health services.

“Is it any wonder that we continue to witness a struggling health service.

“It appears that we have once again been misled, in the same way that we were when we campaigned to save the original Tenby Cottage Hospital many years ago,” added Cllr Williams.