Jeremy Hunt hints at pensions punishments at CQC

The health secretary’s comments come the day after two senior members of CQC staff, former chief executive Cynthia Bower and her former deputy Jill Finney, were named as two officials accused of covering up inspection failures at the Furness General Hospital in Morecambe.

Mr Hunt told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that the CQC must follow “due process” in determining what sanction should be imposed, but said he would back the health watchdog “absolutely to the hilt” if it chose to take action against individuals, including those who had left the organisation.

‘Serious consequences’

“These are very, very serious allegations and they should have very, very serious consequences if they are proved,” he said.

“I know the CQC are looking into disciplinary procedures and what can be done, what sanctions are available, whether you can have forfeiture of pensions, all those things.

“There has to be due process, but… it is totally appalling that this kind of thing should happen. It’s exactly what shouldn’t be happening in our NHS. It lets down the millions of doctors and nurses who do an amazing job day in, day out, and we have to root it out.”

The government is putting £40m into reforming the commission, Mr Hunt said. The money will be spent on ensuring inspections are conducted by experts, and lead to Ofsted-style reports to give the public confidence over hospital standards.

Police are still investigating the death of nine-day-old baby Joshua Titcombe, who died in 2008 at Furness General Hospital, which was run by University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Trust. On Thursday, officers said they would widen the investigation to cover other deaths, following the critical report.