AN MP has called for health chiefs to mothball Malton Hospital's maternity unit for 12 months.

Ryedale MP John Greenway believes proposals to close the unit would leave mums-to-be with too far to travel to get medical help.

He has urged North Yorkshire and York Primary Care Trust (PCT) not to fully decommission the unit until they have seen whether the new set up works.

The Press told on Saturday how the maternity unit has been recommended for closure by health bosses.

If plans by the Scarborough and North East Yorkshire Healthcare NHS Trust go ahead, new mothers would have to have their baby at home or travel to York or an extended maternity unit at Scarborough Hospital.

Mr Greenway said: "I am disappointed with the decision but not surprised. I think a lot of people in the area will be sad and a number will be angry because there was a consultation but they had made their minds up to do this.

"It is difficult to know whether this is about clinical safety or about saving money - but with 200 maternity units under threat all over the country you can't tell me it's a local decision.

"The fact is that in Malton they have been struggling for some months now to provide the service that the town has been used to because of a shortage of nurses and that I'm sure will have contributed to this decision.

"I hope they won't be making too early a decision about what to do with the facilities. I certainly feel we should look and see how this new policy works out before we totally close down the Malton facilities because I think the distance from certain part of Ryedale to York or Scarborough will be too far.

"In a year's time, if there have been problems then I think pressure would be applied to reopen the unit."

But Trust chief executive Iain McInnes said: "This consultation set out to identify how we could provide safe, sustainable and equitable maternity services across the trust. By providing a modern, fully-equipped home-from-home unit next to our maternity department, we will fulfil all these requirements.

"We are recommending this approach, based on expert independent clinical advice, to ensure mums to be have more choice and better care.

"It is our view that women will then feel confident in choosing a low-intervention, midwife-led natural birth, secure in the knowledge that, if anything unforeseen were to happen, they are literally just seconds away from epidural relief, specialist medical care, or a dedicated obstetric theatre.

"Far more women will have real choice, and we believe that it will be a safer, more popular service."

The proposals have been the subject of a six-month consultation and will go before the trust's board later this week.