Government plans to reduce the number of Primary Care Trusts in Harlow to between two and five have been met with serious concerns by Liberal Democrat parliamentary spokesman Lorna Spenceley. The plan would see Harlow's primary health services coordinated by a body which would no longer cover just Harlow, but would serve a much larger area.

Mrs Spenceley, a member of Harlow Council's Preview & Best Value Committee, attended an all-day meeting of the Committee on 8 February that quizzed local experts about the proposals. Mrs Spenceley says:

"My greatest concern of all is that the Labour Government has not allowed residents to express a preference for the status quo. The present Harlow PCT is accessible, and responsive to local needs. It has worked well in partnership with other local organisations, and it would be very worrying if all of that was lost under Labour's proposals.

Labour's plans mean that Harlow would be part of a Primary Care Trust that would also cover Harlow, Epping and Uttlesford; or even worse, a single body covering all of Essex apart from Southend and Thurrock. Decisions about local health care would be increasingly remote, and Harlow residents would lose an effective say in local health decisions."