CAMPAIGNERS who fought the downgrading of Southend A&E have reacted with fury at comments made against them in Parliament.

James Duddridge, MP for Rochford and Southend East, used a Commons debate before the summer recess to call those who opposed the Mid and South Essex Success Regime plans ‘”liars”. He also claimed the campaign had been hijacked by Labour group Momentum.

Mr Duddridge accused campaigners of acting “scurrilously” during the election and that “lies had dominated the campaign”. He said: “Some key organisers in the campaign perpetuated the lies.

“Many decent, honest people were involved in the Save Southend A&E campaign, but it was misused by Momentum, which was aggressive and tried to intimidate. There was a public meeting outside my house, with someone using a loudhailer, to try to intimidate me - the tweets asking people to go there specified that - into backing down from saying that all decisions should be clinically led. The circumstances were appalling. I am sorry for opposition members because sometimes the wrath that leads to “red on red” is even fiercer than that which causes “red on blue”.

Unlike Sir David Amess, Mr Duddridge backed the regime plans, which would have seen Southend and Broomfield A&Es downgraded, with only one 24/7 blue light emergency centre in Basildon.

The regime has since backed down and will keep a blue light emergency service at all three hospitals.

Campaigners from Save Southend A&E dismissed the remarks. Norman Traub, a former Southend Hospital consultant and a member of the campaign group, said: “Duddridge’s statement was incorrect. If there were mistakes made they were errors, made honestly. There was no malice behind any factual errors. “The Success Regime was never forthcoming to the public about its plans and this gave rise to a number of misconceptions. They didn’t say clearly and categorically what they were proposing.”

Dr Traub added: “The idea that Momentum was running the campaign is completely without fact. The group is run democratically.”