Hunt heralds new Duty of Candour for hospitals

The Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has called for all hospitals to by bound by a new Duty of Candour. There'll be legal sanctions if they don't comply.

But Mr Hunt has yet to make up his mind about whether individuals in the NHS should also be liable for prosecution if they withhold information. In that sense, his response to the Francis Report is into the Mid Staffordshire scandal may disappoint the families of the hundreds who died needlessly, while being treated by the NHS.

The Health Secretary told the Commons a new Chief Inspector of Hospitals should become 'whistleblower-in-chief' for the NHS. He also wants nurses to get a year's experience as healthcare assistants as part of their training, although it's not clear yet exactly how this will work or whether it will require extra funding.

A new barring system, whereby disgraced managers are stopped from working anywhere else in the NHS, is also being introduced.