Health watchdogs say NHS chiefs have not proved major changes to the Princess Royal Hospital will benefit people.

They want any changes put on ice while a study set up by the NHS Executive is carried out of hospitals in the Burgess Hill, Horsham, East Grinstead and Crawley area.

The Haywards Heath-based Mid Downs Community Health Council has issued a statement saying it is essential to keep the accident and emergency department at Haywards Heath.

The favoured choice of NHS bosses in a set of options is to send all seriously-injured and ill people needing surgery to Brighton instead of Haywards Heath.

Consequence The CHC says says it is still receiving letters and e-mails on the controversial issue.

And it says: "The proposals currently on the table do nothing to persuade residents of Mid Sussex that they will benefit as a consequence.

"Arguments that centralisation of acute and emergency services will improve patient outcomes are not convincing to the population of Mid Sussex, who are well aware of the traffic congestion in central Brighton and the fact that delay could lose lives.

"The fact that the Royal Sussex County Hospital has no helicopter pad could mean that acutely-ill patients end up in Eastbourne, even further away from the local area."

The CHC says that no decisions about the Princess Royal should be taken until a special working group examines NHS services in the north of Sussex, including Crawley, and makes its recommendations by the end of next year.

One idea being considered is a new hospital at Pease Pottage.

Chairman of the CHC Christine Barwell said: "Local people care passionately about their local hospital. They have every right to be heard and for their views to be taken fully into account before any substantial changes are considered."

Evening Argus petition forms are still coming into our office at Brighton.

We hope to have them all by the end of this week so counting can be completed and they can be presented to the Mid Sussex NHS Trust next week before the October 13 deadline.