Tony Hulse has been a consultant at the hospital for 18 years

Tony Hulse, a paediatrician for 18 years at Maidstone Hospital, joined other consultants to speak at a rally.

About 2,500 people turned out to show their support for retaining acute services at the hospital.

Mr Hulse, who is opposed to the planned cuts, said: "I obviously couldn't stand up in public if I was part of the management structure."

The Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust, which has a deficit of �16.7m for this financial year, announced it was cutting 300 posts in May.

'Very little influence'

At the time it said cuts would be made by reducing use of bank and agency staff.

In June, it emerged that the trust - which runs hospitals in Maidstone, Pembury and Tunbridge Wells - was planning to transfer its maternity unit to Pembury Hospital.

Also under the plans, blue-light ambulances would switch from Maidstone Hospital to a new trauma centre at the Kent and Sussex Hospital in Tunbridge Wells.

About 2,500 protesters listened to speeches from consultants Union calls for more funds

Rose Gibb, chief executive of the trust, said the proposals were triggered by a need to modernise services and provide better care.

Mr Hulse resigned as deputy medical director at the trust on Friday, but will retain his post as consultant.

"The trust has huge financial problems which can't be denied, but if you look logically at where you should site your acute services they should be where the largest population is," he said.

"They are proposing to move them to a hospital that is far removed from the motorways, is in a town centre and so is very inaccessible, is very old, and also it doesn't have a helicopter pad.

"I felt I had very little influence in these plans and so there seemed little point in carrying on."

Mr Hulse was one of a number of consultants who spoke at the rally in Mote Park on Saturday.