When a last-minute Cabinet Meeting was called last Thursday morning, charity Epsom and Ewell Talking Newspaper for the Blind thought their date Transport Secretary Chris Grayling was doomed. But the Transport Minister, the borough’s MP for sixteen years, kept his date, albeit ‘a little later than scheduled’.

In an exclusive, wide-ranging interview, Mr Grayling discussed the expansion of Heathrow and extension of HS2; the possibility of extending Oyster Zone 6 and the future of Epsom and St Helier Hospitals.

Responding to a question about the proposed new hospital in Sutton, which he says would take away high end and acute cases from Epsom and St Helier, Mr Grayling said: “If and when the NHS comes forward with a serious plan and evidence they have the money to do it, then we’ll have a serious discussion about what’s right for the area.”

He confirmed that in his view Epsom Hospital should remain as part of the health service in Surrey and that ‘right now no change is imminent for Epsom, it’s doing a great job, but five to ten years from now, I want to make sure that we’ve got the right solution for Surrey’.

For more information about Epsom and Ewell Talking Newspaper or to hear the interview in full, go to eetn.org.uk or call 01372 721519.