THE NHS trust that oversees the conurbation's main hospitals has responded to remarks by Poole MP Sir Robert Syms in which he questioned the pressure they were experiencing.

Giving a response to a post on Twitter about the BCP and Dorset regions being placed in Tier 2 coronavirus restrictions Sir Robert suggested "our hospitals are empty".

The Conservative politician had earlier told the Daily Echo he did not agree with the county being placed in the High Alert measures by the government, which was announced on Thursday, November 26.

The government said the factors it used in making the tier decisions included case detection rates in all age groups, case detection rates in the over 60s, the rate at which cases are rising or falling, the number of positive cases detected as a percentage of tests taken and pressure on the NHS, including current and projected occupancy.

Sir Robert said based on these criteria he could not see why Dorset had been placed in Tier Two.

In response to his comment that the region's hospitals "are empty", University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Royal Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Hospitals, posted: "Our staff have never worked so hard and we couldn’t be more proud of all they are doing for our region.

"We would love to welcome Robert Syms so he can meet our front line staff to see for himself that our hospitals are not empty and how lockdown helps us protect planned care."

When approached by the Daily Echo about his post and the hospitals' reply, Sir Robert said: "My comments were about Covid cases but I do have concerns about non-Covid treatment delays. I am pleased the hospitals feel they are catching up.

"We are lucky to have two good hospitals and I look forward to visiting them both as soon as it's safe to do so."