STAFF in the theatre unit at Royal Blackburn Hospital have been told that all overtime is to be cancelled.

They were also told in a meeting that a reliance on agency staff was to end, in a bid to get staffing levels right.

But hospital bosses say this will not impact on any operations or treatment.

Coun Roy Davies, who heads the town’s health watchdog, said the hospital needed to reduce the £5million a year it spends on agency staff, as long as it does not cause too many problems to services.

“The bill for agency staff is far too high so it is imperative that it is reduced.

“I would like to see more nurses employed in permanent positions if that is what is required. We need to train and encourage local nurses to work at the hospital.

“I am sure there will be a slight impact on the services at the hospital, but we need to keep an eye on it and see how it develops.

“I believe the hospital are starting to get things right now and correct the mistakes that have been made, so we need to support them at the moment.” Christine Miles, the divisional general manager for diagnostic and treatment services for East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “The Trust is committed to reducing reliance on agency staff and overtime by making sure we get our core staffing levels right.

“We believe this is in the best interests of our patients and our staff.

“This does mean that in a number of areas there will be less reliance in the future on staff working over time and on bringing in staff from agencies.

“We are currently working through how we do this in partnership with our staff. “We strongly believe this will allow us to deliver even better patient care and get the best possible value for money for the people of East Lancashire.

“Wherever possible we want our staff doing the work with their normal hours and rates of pay.”

Tim Ellis, North West regional spokesman for public services union Unison, said they were aware of the meeting and would be discussing any issues arising from it with their members.