Adam Cairns, the new Airedale NHS trust chief executive, has stated that there is no basis for the closure of Airedale Hospital or the accident and emergency department.

Ian Rutter, chief executive of Airedale and North Bradford PCT, has also categorically stated that there is absolutely no threat to the future of the hospital, and it has a bright future ahead.

They were both reacting to claims by MP Ann Cryer, who says she fears that the bulk of services including critical care would be moved away from Airedale and offered at Leeds and Bradford. She is worried about the hospital Trust's future because of Government proposals for service delivery change.

Mrs Cryer is also concerned about ideas for a new primary care trust based on Airedale and Bradford.

The emphatic statements from Mr Cairns and Mr Rutter are indeed welcome. The problem is that Mrs Cryer is not the sort of person to make such comments to grab the headlines or simply to elicit rejection statements. She and her team will have researched the situation before making the claims.

This is not just a local issue. An increasing number of A&E units are closing up and down the land, with experts predicting that up to 30 emergency departments could be closed, leaving just 170 in the country. Three units have shut their doors since June, leading to considerable knock-on effects on the other nearby centres.

There is plenty of evidence that closing smaller A&E units is firmly on the agenda of some Trusts.

The whole idea, of course, is for the services to become more efficient and cost effective -- there's nothing wrong with that. The Trusts involved locally have well chronicled financial problems, which Mrs Cryer thinks could be blamed for any controversial moves.

Mrs Cryer is once again flying in the face of Government policy, with her allegiance being first and foremost with constituents. This issue had to be raised and discussed and questions answered.

The importance of the Trusts' responses cannot be over stressed.

As this area develops it is vital for companies and staff thinking of moving to the area to know that there is top class, modern health service to meet the district's needs, and that includes Airedale Hospital and its A&E department.

The staff needed to be reassured in public too.

We will take the chief executives statements on trust.