Stafford Hospital inquiry 'has the power it needs'

Health Secretary Andrew Lansley says he is satisfied the public inquiry under Robert Francis has all the powers it needs to investigate the Stafford Hospital care scandal.

Mr Lansley visited Stafford yesterday where Cure the NHS campaigners told him hospital bosses needed more support to continue making the hospital better.

Mr Lansley met members of the campaign group after visiting the hospital where he toured several wards which had been heavily criticised in previous investigations.

He spoke to staff and patients in A&E, and wards 10 and 11 and he met trust chairman Sir Stephen Moss and hospital chief executive Antony Sumara.

The latest inquiry, which will be held in public, will be run by Robert Francis QC, and is expected to look at why events at Stafford went unchallenged by NHS regulators and people like the South Staffordshire Coroner.

Mr Lansley told the Express & Star that he was confident Robert Francis QC had "all the powers he needs" to investigate the trust and call witnesses to give evidence.

He would not comment on whether the former hospital chief executive Martin Yeates will give evidence or not but both Cure the NHS and local MP Jeremy Lefroy have said Mr Yeates should be called.

Mr Lansley said he wanted to visit Stafford to see the changes already taking place following the events of the past 12 months but he added he was "determined to get to the bottom of what happened".

He added that the inquiry must not get in the way of efforts to improve the hospital further.

He praised Cure the NHS, saying: "It would have been easy to give up when they were being resisted but they persisted and they were right to persist."

He said their efforts would hopefully create improvements in the wider NHS.

Questioned over the hospital's financial situation, a predicted £7 million deficit this year, Mr Lansley said: "The safety of the hospital's patients is the first priority, patients have to be put first. After that we will work out the other details."

He said the Strategic Health Authority had already provided cash support to the trust.

Members of Cure the NHS told the Minister that hospital boss Antony Sumara needed more support and raised their fears over what could happen when his contract ended.