A PENSIONER will have to travel 15 miles and pay £70 to a private clinic to allow him to get the treatment he needs to hear properly.

David Martin, 70, of Cressing, needs his ears syringed once a year due to a build-up of wax and hearing problems.

He was told by Blandford Medical Centre, in Mace Avenue. Braintree, he would have to travel to Colchester for treatment, as the centre were no longer able to offer it.

Mr Martin said: “I cannot hear when it is really bad. You can hear noises but I cannot hear the car starting in the morning or the TV in the evening. It really affects your quality of life.”

The pensioner also said he worries this is another example of the “privatisation” of the NHS, and fears other seemingly routine services could be next.

A spokesman from Blandford Medical Centre said the decision had been made due to funding pressures.

A spokesperson from Mid Essex Clinical Commissioning Group said: “Ear syringing provision at GP practices is a national issue rather than local to mid Essex. Currently, individual practices are deciding whether they offer this service to patients.”