Medway Maritime Hospital is Kent's biggest and busiest hospital, but it's stretched beyond belief and has been stuck in special measures for well over a year. In a recent spot inspection, the Care Quality Commission says it thinks our local hospital is in "a state of crisis". The chief inspector of hospitals found many services inadequate or needing improvement – from A&E to maternity, and from surgery to outpatient care.

Kent is on the frontline of a wider crisis in the NHS - and it’s no accident. Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt recently asked Medway Maritime Hospital to find £12.6m in cuts. Now our trust says it’s almost £8m in the red. Tory MPs, Mark Reckless included, have been responsible for a concerted attack on our National Health Service during the last four years. Join me in challenging Jeremy Hunt, Mark Reckless and the rest of them to step up and offer Medway Hospital the financial and practical support it so desperately needs to serve our towns properly.