Health chief Sir Neil McKay has insisted he wouldn't be part of any plans that put patients in west Cumbria at risk.

Speaking at the launch of a new public consultation into the future of local health services, the Success Regime boss sought to reassure communities over proposals to downgrade maternity and paediatrics in the west, and transfer more emergency care to Carlisle.

Despite being brought in by the Government largely to plug a growing financial deficit in the local NHS - which he predicts will grow to £163m over the next five years if changes aren't made - he insisted money was not the overwhelming driver in the new plans.

"We are driven by how we make services even safer and fit for purpose, not just for a couple of years but for 10 years or more," he said.

The options published today by the Success Regime are likely to be met with fierce opposition across north and west Cumbria.

In the west, a major concern is safety if mothers-to-be have to travel 40 miles in an ambulance to reach a consultant.

But Sir Neil said he would not be part of any proposals that put people at risk. He stressed that the key issue is a difficulty recruiting paediatricians to the area, which has a knock on effect on other key services - including the ability to safely run a special care baby unit.

He said he understood that there are strong calls to retain specialist services in the west, but said they had not been able to find a way to do this in a way that don't leave services vulnerable.

Plans to close community hospital beds have also been met with strong opposition, but he added that new ways of working - focusing on community care and preventing hospital admissions - mean there will not be the same demand for beds in future.

Sir Neil accepted that the document, entitled The Future of Healthcare, is not likely to be widely welcomed by the public.

But he stressed that no decisions have yet been made and said he encourages people to come forward with other suggestions.

He added: "Of all the things I've been involved with in the health service, trying to find solutions for the long term in this area is the most demanding."

The official 12-week consultation starts today, with public meetings in towns across north and west Cumbria getting underway in a couple of weeks time.