An appeal against the closure of the Welshpool Air Ambulance base has failed after a judgement in the High Court.
The announcement today (19/6/25) followed an application for Judicial Review that was issued at the High Court last year, a hearing took place on 22nd and 23rd of January and concluded on 7th February.
Montgomeryshire MS Russell George has expressed huge disappointment regarding the outcome of the Judicial Review and claim against the decision taken by the Wales Joint Commissioning Committee to reconfigure Wales Air Ambulance Services, including to permanently close and centralise the Welshpool and Caernarfon Air Ambulance bases.
Mr George has also said that he is surprised that many of the arguments and challenges that were presented at the hearing seem to have not been addressed in the judicial review judgement.
Commenting, Mr George said:
"This is an incredibly disappointing outcome. The proposal to close the Welshpool base was founded on flawed information and a process riddled with bias, misinformation, and a lack of transparency.
"Despite assurances from the charity and Welsh Government Ministers that these changes would not result in a poorer service, we know this is not the case. Evidence presented during the hearing revealed that 40 communities, many of them in mid Wales, will experience slower response times as a result of this decision.
"I want to pay tribute to the many individuals who fought tirelessly to challenge the closure of the mid Wales base, whether through petitions, fundraising, or public campaigning. This has been an extraordinary campaign and demonstrates the strength of feeling across our communities.
I was surprised that many of the arguments and challenges that were presented at the hearing earlier this year, seem to have not been addressed in the judicial review judgement. This is a setback, but it does not mark the end of the matter. As a campaign group, we will now be meeting to discuss the next steps and a potential challenge to the decision”
