Campaigners fighting to save beds at Maryport’s cottage hospital sense the tide is turning in their favour after Allerdale councillors passed a vote of no confidence in the group deciding the hospital’s future.

The council expressed extreme concern at the proposals emerging from Success Regime’s work and members agreed to write to Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt and the Department for Health, calling on them to thoroughly investigate the impact of each of the proposed options.

Bill Barnes, of the Save Our Beds campaign, said: “I think this could be a turning point.

“The ante is actually upping because Allerdale council have just given the vote of no confidence which I think is a tremendous boost to the campaign. Organisations like us can do a lot but to actually change minds isn’t easy.”

Despite being met by around 300 protestors and presented with a petition with 7,000 signatures and 350 individual protest letters earlier this month, Success Regime boss Sir Neil McKay said the removal of beds from Maryport was what he described as “the emergent thinking” at the moment. He added that no decision would be made until after the public consultation starting next month.

Mr Barnes said campaigners were left uninspired by Sir Neil’s recent visit and would be prepared to explore the possibility of a legal challenge to the proposed closure if it came to that.

He added: “If we get to the stage when they start this consultation and we think it’s not going our way, we wouldn’t sit back and take that.”

The Success Regime’s suggestions include removing in-patient facilities from Maryport and moving all night-time maternity services from Whitehaven to Carlisle.