The leader of the council has welcomed the news a health boss will be retiring months after he called for him to quit.

Councillor Stephen Alambritis urged Dr Howard Freeman, now an MBE, to quit as chairman of Merton’s Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) in June after its five year strategy was published.

Merton health boss must resign over SW London cuts plan, demands council leader

Merton health boss Dr Howard Freeman MBE to retire as CCG chairman before Nelson Hospital opens

Coun Alambritis’ call came after plans to save nearly half a billion pounds in healthcare cost across south west London were questioned by the local CCGs in June this year.

A draft strategy from newly formed South West London Collaborative Commissioning (SWLCC) stated there is a predicted budget shortfall of £210m over the next five years.

It would be shared between clinical commissioning groups working in Merton, Sutton, Wandsworth, Croydon, Kingston and Richmond.

Coun Alambritis said: "This move is for the best, and we wish Dr Freeman well in the future.

"We will now be calling on the Government and the NHS to respect the local community's clearly expressed views and ensure the new chairman is opposed to any closure of local accident and emergency departments."

Dr Freeman, who was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list in the summer, will retire from his post as chairman of the NHS Merton Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) at the end of March.