A Flintshire politician is calling for public money to be allocated to a crisis-hit charity which has already saved the lives of seven youngsters in the county. 

Alyn and Deeside MP Mark Tami urged the House of Commons to consider his plea on behalf of CRY (Cardiac Risk in the Young) after being made aware of the desperate situation in which it finds itself. 

CRY campaigner Doreen Harley, of Connah’s Quay, who lost her 27-year-old daughter Lisa to an undetected heart defect, fears more lives will be needlessly lost if funding cannot be sought to pay for screening sessions. 

“We just haven’t got a penny left for screening,” she said.  “Quite simply, if nobody can help then there is no way we will be able to organise any more mobile screening sessions in Flintshire. 

This is something which saves lives and people can go on to live relatively normal lives as long as the condition is detected.” 

Efforts from kind-hearted Flintshire folk helped raise money for the first screening session in February, which highlighted cardiac abnormalities in five 14 to 35-year-olds. 

More recently, a return visit to the Beaufort Park Hotel in New Brighton funded by the HJ Heinz Charitable Trust picked up problems in two of the youngsters who booked an appointment, which may well have saved their lives. 

Mr Tami told the House of Commons: “This House welcomes the work of CRY in securing charitable funding for mobile cardiac screening to test youngsters for symptoms of Sudden Death Syndrome. 

“Several people have been diagnosed with this potentially fatal syndrome in recent months through the screening programme.” 

Mr Tami has asked for public money to be allocated to the screening strategy so young lives can continue being saved. 

Mrs Harley added: “This would be very welcome, but in the meantime we desperately need fundraisers to help us out of this situation.”