The delegation, headed by New Zealand Nurses Association delegate and registered nurse Linda Smillie, Mayor of Dunedin Jules Radich, Dunedin City Councillors, Waitaki Mayor Gary Kircher and Invercargill Mayor Nobby Clark delivered the petition this afternoon.
"We may have taken our message to the seat of power today, but this campaign is far from over," Dunedin mayor Jules Radich said.
"It’s vital for all 350,000 of us in the South that the government listens and builds the hospital it promised."
Thousands of people turned out to protest the cuts in Dunedin in September.
Senior government ministers had warned about cuts to the proposed build, blaming growing costs.
The hospital had been given a budget of $1.88b and now faces two likely options, a scaled back version of the original inpatient building design on the old Cadbury site, or a refurbishment of the existing site.
The old (current) hospital has "concrete cancer", unsuitable column placement and ceilings too low for modern equipment. It’s simply not suitable for 21st-century care, Mr Radich said.
"We cannot overestimate the impact a downgraded hospital would have on health outcomes for people across the South. Decisions made now will have implications for decades to come," Mr Radich says.
"We will continue to press home our key message – build it once, build it right."
