GENERAL practitioners have voted "overwhelmingly" against proposals to close down accident and emergency services at Epsom Hospital.
The Better Standards Better Value (BSBV) review recommended in May that Epsom should become an elective care centre and lose both its A&E and maternity units.
But in a ballot, instigated by MPs including Chris Grayling and Sir Paul Beresford, GPs practising in the new Surrey Downs commissioning area opposed the closures.
Speaking to the Advertiser, Sir Paul, MP for Mole Valley, said: "This secret ballot was to test the feeling we, as local MPs, felt that the GPs who look to Epsom Hospital were not behind the new proposals.
"The result backs that feeling.
"This secret ballot was independently verified, and it shows that the controversial plans for Epsom are not just opposed by the public, but by the doctors as well."
He added: "In addition to the key concerns already raised by the group of MPs, I personally think the result marks the death knell of the BSBV project.
"Now we would like the BSBV team to start seeking an alternative solution for Epsom Hospital that enhances the service and links the hospital with Surrey rather than London."
When asked if they favoured the BSBV proposals, 68 per cent of GPs voted no, while 82 per cent voted for a "separate process" that was Surrey specific and not part of a wider London review.
The survey was completed by 44 per cent of GPs contacted, and was counted and verified by a returning officer at Mole Valley District Council.
Ashtead MP Chris Grayling said: "We organised this ballot because we did not believe that local doctors really agreed with what is going on, and the overwhelming results clearly shows that we were right.
"I hope that all involved will now call a halt and stop wasting public money on a review that, in the context of Surrey, has never added up."
As well as the Dorking Road hospital, the BSBV also reviewed services at St George's Hospital in Tooting, and the hospitals in Kingston and Croydon.
The Surrey Downs Clinical Commissioning Group has delegated voting powers to three members ahead of a meeting of all seven clinical commissioning groups later this year.
