The average cost of an emergency admission is �1,000

Cornwall's health service is owed �2m for the care of visitors and it can take up to two years for the money to be paid by the Department of Health.

The Liberal Democrat MP for St. Ives, Andrew George, says the system must be reviewed.

"We have now allowed the system to be in place for long enough for us to be able to prove the point we were making before and to say that Cornwall is very seriously out of pocket," said Mr George.

Most hospitals in the summer breathe a sigh of relief and have a bit of a break John Barnes, consultant Royal Cornwall Hospital

"Yes, the money comes through eventually but the fact is that Cornwall has to carry that burden year on year."

The annual influx of tourists means pressure on staff and beds with the average cost of an emergency admission being �1,000.

John Barnes, the lead clinician on emergency medicine at the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro, said the delay was 'crippling'.

"What this stops you doing is developing," he said.

"It has a huge impact in all departments, most hospitals in the summer breathe a sigh of relief and have a bit of a break.

"Unfortunately in Cornwall we certainly take the sigh but we know it's because we are going to get a heavy workload."

The Primary Care Trusts in the county are bearing most of the debt.

They have agreed to meet the majority of costs while hospitals wait for the Department of Health to settle bills from previous years.