RESIDENTS will get a chance to air their views on controversial health reforms at a meeting later this month.

The Government has called a “pause” to the Health and Social Care Bill, which would radically shake-up the organisation of the NHS in the UK.

Ministers have launched into a “listening exercise” in response to growing concerns from medical practitioners and mounting opposition to the reforms.

A special Health and Scrutiny Wellbeing Panel meeting has been scheduled for Wednesday, May 25, for Enfield residents to have their say on the bill.

Councillor Alev Cazimoglu, newly appointed chairman of the panel, urged as many residents as possible to attend.

She said: “The Health and Social Care Bill, if implemented, will transform the way the NHS works forever, and will bring in sweeping changes that many argue will alter the core values about the service we hold dear.

“Patients could be charged for certain treatments, and we could also see the spectre of market forces returning to state healthcare, which could cause fragmentation of services.

“I would like our residents to have an opportunity to engage with this process. This bill will have a fundamental impact on our healthcare system, how it is delivered and what it will mean to our local hospitals.”

The reforms, if implemented now, would see the abolition of primary care trusts like NHS Enfield, give greater independence to hospitals by making them foundation trusts, and strip out layers of management.

The boldest change, though, is to place the power to spend the NHS budget into the hands of local GPs.

A consortium in Enfield is in the process of being established already, and if fully formed, will take charge of deciding which NHS services the borough's residents need.

Opponents, some of whom are planning to march on Whitehall on Tuesday evening in protest at the plans, argue the reforms amount to privatisation of the NHS by introducing market competition into the health service.

The meeting in Enfield is being held at Enfield Civic Centre, in Silver Street, starting at 7.30pm.