THE chair of Cowdenbeath Area Committee is quite right to invite the Scottish Government Health Minister to see the reason why the town needs a new health centre.

The campaign to highlight the problems that there are in the David Street facility began more than four years go and despite some encouraging sounds from Holyrood and NHS Fife, and even a potential site for a replacement being chosen, nothing concrete has arrived.

The severity of the problems that the GPs and staff at Lochgelly Health Centre have consistently got to a point where providing a top service is becoming more and more difficult.

As Ms Erskine pointed out in her letter to Jane Freeman: "The existing Health Centre has long required replacement as the building leaks like a sieve in inclement weather and the lay out and dimensions of the consulting rooms are not fit for purpose, among many other concerns. The local Community Council has raised this with local councillors and elicited the support of the local MSP three years ago. There was a recognition by the Health Service that there were definite suitability issues as well as the aforementioned and as a result there took place several consultation meetings with all stakeholders. These meetings were fruitful.....but nothing has transpired."

The point the Area Committee convener is making is that although everyone recognises how much a new facility is needed and wanted by the people of the town, there just seems to be a lack of movement from the authorities.

As The Avenue housing project grows by the week Lochgelly's population gets ever bigger but the health facilities for the town remain static, nae deteriorating, as the Health Centre starts to show signs of its age.

Hopefully Ms Freeman accepts the offer of a visit to see at first hand the need for a new Health Centre in Lochgelly, it would at least give people some hope that there plight is not being ignored.