Soccer star John O'Shea has backed a campaign to stop the predicted break-up of the hospital network in the southeast, which serves half a million people.
The Sunderland and Ireland defender yesterday released a video clip on the South East Hospital Action Alliance's (SEHAA) website urging people to sign a petition against any dismantling of the regional network.
An expert group report, due to be presented to the Government this week, is believed to recommend severing the governance and medical structures currently linking acute hospitals across the region.
However, consultants, politicians and the public have mounted a sustained campaign in recent months calling for the network to be retained.
