ROUGE breast surgeon Ian Paterson is to be stripped of his pension by the health secretary.
According to national reports Wes Streeting has decided to remove Paterson’s £1millon taxpayer-funded pension under the rules that allow NHS benefits to be forfeited in the case of criminal, negligent or fraudulent acts.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “These were appalling crimes and we are assisting His Majesty’s Coroner with the inquests concerning the tragic deaths of patients previously treated by Ian Paterson. We offer our sincere condolences to the families.
“Cases like this are fortunately rare, but this government will prioritise patient safety to ensure everyone receives the high quality, safe treatment they deserve.
“We understand families’ frustration and recognise that significant improvements to patient safety are required. This government is working urgently to ensure all lessons from this terrible case are being learned.”
Inquests into the death of more than 60 patients who were treated by Paterson were opened on Monday (October 7) with a further 20 opening later.
The inquests, which are being heard at Birmingham and Solihull Coroner’s Court, are set to last for two years.
Paterson is currently serving a 20-year jail sentence after being convicted in 2017 of 17 counts of wounding with intent and three counts of unlawful wounding against ten patients.
The consultant breast surgeon, whose victims run into hundreds, worked at hospitals run by the Heart of England NHS Trust (HEFT) and also practised privately at Bupa hospitals in Solihull and Sutton Coldfield, latterly run by Spire Healthcare.
