THE future of vital health services at Southampton hospital will be thrashed out during crunch talks on Monday.

MP John Denham and bosses at Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust are set for showdown talks over why it is an estimated £7.5 million in the red. Mr Denham, a former health minister, is gearing up to ask a series of tough questions to trust chairman Richard Keightley and chief executive Mark Hackett - and he is demanding answers.

The Southampton Itchen MP has spent weeks poring over files and statistics to arm himself with a bundle of facts and figures relating to the NHS trust's cash black hole.

Despite a busy schedule, Mr Denham set up the face-to-face meeting at less than a month's notice because he is determined to get to the bottom of the financial crisis, which came to light recently.

Today, he was staying tight-lipped about the exact questions he plans to fire at Mr Keightley and Mr Hackett. Mr Denham insisted it was crucial the parties "sat down and thrashed out" what was going so badly wrong with the trust's finances.

He said: "It is absolutely vital we lay all our cards on the table."

The trust - which runs Southampton General, the Royal South Hants and the Princess Anne hospitals - reported debts of £5m last April.

Health chiefs pledged to claw back £15 million in savings by April 2005. But the Daily Echo revealed how the trust had failed miserably to stop the rot. More worryingly it had fallen an extra £2.5 million into debt - despite receiving record funding from the government and making five months worth of cutbacks.

Bosses admit the financial crisis could mean more job losses and ward closures.

Mr Denham blamed bad management, claiming the hospital trust had received record funding from the government.

He also said other trusts around the country had managed to balance their books, despite facing similar pressures.

Health chiefs rejected Mr Denham's claims that bad management is responsible for the rising debts.

They say the service they are trying to provide is simply not affordable.

Earlier this month the trust admitted it had been handed an extra £30m by the government this year.

They revealed two-thirds of the extra funding went on unavoidable staff wage increases and pensions.