David Ruffley MP, together with over 30 health campaigners from across the county, today collected over 1200 signatures in support of Suffolk's ailing NHS at stands in Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket.

Supported by local councillors from St Edmundsbury Borough Council, Bury St Edmunds Town Council and Suffolk County Council, David Ruffley manned a stall on Angel Hill in Bury St Edmunds between 9.45am and 1pm to show his support for hard working health professionals across Suffolk.

David Ruffley and his fellow campaigners were inundated with statements of support from members of the public and the success of the day's event was reflected in the number of people signing David's petition.

David said:

'The NHS is one of our Country's great institutions. I know from being a patient on a West Suffolk ward just how important a service our hard working doctors and nurses provide.

'I was expecting a good response from the people of Bury St Edmunds, however, I was quite overwhelmed by the depth of feeling and the level of support that was in evidence today.

'The people of Suffolk have the greatest respect for our NHS and they are quite rightly outraged by the current climate of financial mismanagement that is threatening frontline services in our hospitals.

'Today we received over 1200 signatures calling on Gordon Brown to stop his mismanagement of the NHS.

'The people of Suffolk have spoken- enough is enough. The cutbacks to our NHS, which could threaten the Accident and Emergency Department at West Suffolk Hospital, must stop and they must stop now.'