Private surgery plan 'experiment'

The Government has been urged to intervene into controversial plans by an NHS hospital to privatise surgical work.

Pressure group London Health Emergency said it had obtained documents showing that Kingston Hospital in south west London will bring in a private firm next year to carry out all its planned surgery.

The group described the move as an "unprecedented experiment" which it said would take private companies deeper into the heart of the NHS than had been previously considered.

The development has also led to disquiet amongst staff and their representatives who have described it as a "significant step".

Geoff Martin, head of campaigns at London Health Emergency, called for the intervention of Health Secretary Alan Johnson, who visited Kingston hospital with Prime Minister Gordon Brown at the end of June.

Mr Martin said: "The plans by Kingston hospital to being a commercial, profit driven company right into the heart of the NHS to run all routine surgery is unprecedented and would give that company enormous leverage to launch a takeover bid to run the whole hospital.

"This is NHS privatisation on a scale we have never seen before.

"It would appear that the Trust board have cooked this plan up themselves and it will be a huge embarrassment for the government at a time when they are signalling that the pace of private companies' involvement in the NHS is being pulled back."

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