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Several hundred people have attended a protest in Newry over the planned removal of emergency general surgery at Daisy Hill Hospital.

The service is to be permanently moved to Craigavon Area Hospital under proposals by the Southern Health Trust.

It was relocated from Daisy Hill in February 2022, in what the trust previously said was an interim measure.

The trust said the move was due to ongoing recruitment challenges.

A period of public consultation on the proposal to permanently move emergency general surgery ended on 21 April.

On Saturday, about 800 protesters walked from Newry city centre to Daisy Hill Hospital.

Francis Gallagher, from the Save Our Emergency Surgery Campaign Committee, said people who live in the area were "very concerned" about having to travel to Craigavon for emergency general surgery.

"We would be saying to the Department of Health that they need to get their vision right," he added.

"Centralising everything is not the way to go. Having these huge hospitals is not the way to go."

In a statement, the Southern Health and Social Care Trust said: "We understand that local people want to show their support for Daisy Hill Hospital and we welcome their support for Daisy Hill Hospital."