NORTH West health chiefs have outraged East Lancashire MPs by refusing to site new NHS Direct information kiosks in the area in favour of so called "tourist" hot spots.

Health Minister Gisela Stuart announced that there would be 153 of the new points to give people immediate access to national health services.

But among the 124 new kiosks announced there were none in East Lancashire. Although some parts of inner city Manchester and Liverpool got the kiosks, the rest went to places such as Manchester airport, Blackpool, Liverpool's Albert Dock, and Kendal and Windermere in the Lake District.

A Department of Health spokesman said that North West health chiefs had decided to concentrate on putting the kiosks - which give patients instant free access to key health information - in easily accessible public places, in tourist areas in the region and deprived inner city parts of Greater Manchester and Merseyside.

A recent survey for the Department of the Environment placed Blackburn as the 10th most deprived district in the country. The move has been condemned by Rossendale and Darwen MP and Tourism Minister Janet Anderson, her Hyndburn Labour colleague Greg Pope and Ribble Valley Tory MP Nigel Evans.

Mrs Anderson said: "This is a great idea but I want to know who says that the North West does not have tourist attractions in East Lancashire, including some in my own constituency.

"This facility needs to be spread evenly across the country and there are tourists and local people who deserve to benefit. I shall be taking this up with health ministers."

Mr Evans said: "This is appalling negligence. No one can say that parts of the Ribble Valley are not tourist attractions. Residents and visitors to East Lancashire deserve the benefit of this service. I shall be taking it up with ministers."

Government whip Mr Pope said: "I think some of these points should be in East Lancashire. It's a good idea but it deserves to be spread throughout the region and the country.

"I shall be raising this with health ministers and pointing out that many tourists come to East Lancashire." The information kiosks -- which will be in supermarkets, pharmacies, walk-in centres, hospital casualty departments, colleges and universities -- will allow people not connected to the internet to access the NHS Direct on line website.

This gives easy to understand health information for people.

Mrs Stuart said: "The new NHS Direct points will give the public greater information about how they can look after their own health and about health services. We have placed them in key public locations such as supermarkets, pharmacies and libraries because you want as many people as possible to have easy access to up to date, clear and reliable health information. The touch screen terminals are another key element in modernising the NHS.

"We are targeting universities, sixth form colleges and holiday destinations to make sure that people away from home -- both holidaymakers and students -- have easy access to basic health information."