IT IS outrageous that the trust running City and Sandwell hospitals should have put barriers in the way of senior doctors planning to hold a vote over controversial changes to services.
We are delighted that their attempts failed and that consultants have had their say over cutbacks to City's Hospital's casualty department and paediatric services.
It is difficult not to conclude that the secret ballot's result provides a clue that might explain management's lack of cooperation - 96 per cent of the consultants voted against the plans.
The trust has been given a bloody nose.
Not by hot-heads, not by those who do not understand the intricacies of health care, but by professional men and women who are used to making reasoned decisions and who work on the frontline.
These are momentous plans that will shape health provision in a huge part of Birmingham and the Black Country for years ahead.
Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt has the power to veto the changes. We urge her to look carefully at what is being planned and to ensure the sick and injured will still get the best care.