Fox Bites Off Baby's Finger In Cot Attack

A fox dragged a one-month-old baby from his cot and mauled his hand, biting the child's finger off, it has been reported.

The child was left seriously injured after the animal crept into his bedroom in Bromley, southeast London.

The child's mother was alerted by his screaming and rushed into his room to see his hand in the animal's mouth, the Mail On Sunday reported.

After a short struggle, the mother managed to free her child, but his finger had been ripped off.

Plastic surgeons were able to reattach the boy's finger and he is said to be recovering well at home.

The animal had got into the family home through an open backdoor.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: "We were called at 1638 on February 6 by staff at St Thomas's Hospital to reports a baby boy who had been admitted to hospital after being attacked by a fox.

The fox attack happened in Bromley on Wednesday

"Police attended to find a four-week-old baby with a hand injury. The baby was admitted to hospital after the attack at its home address in Bromley."

London Mayor Boris Johnson said more needs to be done to deal with the problem of urban foxes.

"My thoughts are with the boy and his family," he said.

"Thankfully this sort of attack, though terrible, is rare, but we must do more to tackle the growing problem of urban foxes.

"They may appear cuddly and romantic but foxes are a pest and a menace, particularly in our cities."

An RSPCA spokeswoman said the only reason a fox would attack is due to fear.

"It's extremely unusual for foxes to attack young children or anyone," she said.

"It's not typical fox behaviour at all. Foxes will come closer to a house if there are food sources.

"Then they can become quite bold, but they usually do back off and run away when there's people around."

Lola (L) and Isabella Koupparis were attacked by a fox in June 2010

In June 2010, twin baby sisters Lola and Isabella Koupparis were attacked by a fox while sleeping in their cots in east London.

Isabella was found with deep cuts to her arm and Lola's face was covered in blood. Both under went surgery at the Royal London Hospital.

The issue of foxes attacking humans has divided the public, with many sceptics questioning recent cases amid fears of a backlash against urban foxes.

In April last year, wildlife presenter Chris Packham said he simply did not believe reports of people getting attacked by the animals.

The broadcaster, who gave his views on the back of a Channel 4 programme Foxes Live: Wild In The City, said there was no proof that the creatures attack dogs and cats except in "exceptional circumstances".

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Horsemeat Scandal An 'International Conspiracy'

Environment Secretary Owen Paterson has told Sky News an "international conspiracy" could be at the centre of the horsemeat scandal, as he warned that further cases of contaminated meat may be revealed within days.

Mr Paterson said the next set of results on all retailers' and manufacturers' processed beef products could show more traces of horsemeat.

"There may well be more bad results coming through, that's the point of doing this random analysis," Mr Paterson said.

The results, ordered by the Food Standards Agency, are due on Friday.

Mr Paterson held an emergency meeting with food producers, leading supermarkets and the Food Standards Agency (FSA) in central London on Sunday.

He said it had been agreed that there would be "a very rapid analysis of current products", with results by the end of next week, to understand "the extent of this problem which is either caused by gross incompetence or what I suspect is actually an international criminal conspiracy".

"If there's a criminal act we will work with the authorities wherever they are to ensure the appropriate measures are taken," he said.

The talks came as frozen food company Findus UK said it is considering legal action against its suppliers after tests found up to 100% horsemeat in some of its beef lasagnes.

One eBay auction had a Findus lasagne selling for £12

"Findus is taking legal advice about the grounds for pursuing a case against its suppliers, regarding what they believe is their suppliers' failure to meet contractual obligations about product integrity," the statement said.

"The early results from Findus UK's internal investigation strongly suggests that the horsemeat contamination in Beef Lasagne was not accidental."

Enterprising eBay users have already taken to auctioning the firm's beef lasgnes, with one receiving bids of £12 - with proceeds apparently going towards Help The Heroes charity.

Mr Paterson also warned that the scandal "could go deeper than we thought".

Substituting horse for beef was "fraud on the British public" and "people should buy what is on the label," he said.

The Environment Secretary said that retailers held the "ultimate responsibility" for making sure that horsemeat was not in their products and that they would have to start doing their own testing. 

Scotland Yard met with representatives from the FSA on Friday night over the scandal.

During the talks on Saturday morning the supermarkets had agreed to work with the FSA to report their test results on a quarterly basis.

Bosses from leading supermarkets including Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda and Morrisons attended the meeting at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

Findus was not invited to the Government summit but the Food and Drink Federation, of which they are a member, attended.

Earlier, Findus reiterated its apology for the scandal, but it came under fire from opposition leader Ed Miliband amid reports the company knew some days before it withdrew its lasagnes from sale that they were likely to contain horsemeat.

Mr Miliband told Sky News: "The head of the company needs to come to Britain and explain himself and who knew what when.

"Many customers were innocently buying Findus products when it appears that the company may have known it was likely to be contaminated by horsemeat."

Findus has strongly denied other reports saying it knew about the problems as early as last August, saying that they first suspected an issue on January 22, when they ordered the initial tests.

The presence of equine DNA was confirmed on January 29 and a product recall was ordered on February 2 after further tests had been conducted.

Aldi meanwhile has confirmed that two of its ready meal ranges produced by Comigel, the French supplier also used by Findus, were found to contain between 30% and 100% horsemeat.

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Brit Held Over Threats To Kill 200 US Students

Detectives are questioning a British man in connection with alleged threats to shoot dead 200 children at a US school.

Sky Tyne and Wear reported Northumbria Police arrested Reece Elliott, 24, from South Shields, on Friday on suspicion of making threats to kill.

An anonymous post made on Wednesday on a Facebook memorial page set up for a deceased student threatened a mass killing spree, saying: "I'm gonna kill hopefully at least 200 before I kill myself."

Elliott is being held at South Shields police station.

Homeland Security in the US has been informed, and the threats led schools in Warren County, Tennessee, to tighten security.

Some reports said as many as 3,000 students did not attend classes the next day.

The post said: "My father has three guns. I'm planning on killing him first and putting him in a dumpster. Then I'm taking the motor and I'm going in fast.

"I'm gonna kill hopefully at least 200 before I kill myself."

Tennessee Bureau of Investigation spokesperson Kristin Helm said its cyber crime agents are helping in the investigation and the source of the post had not been identified.

It is not yet known whether any potential prosecution will be brought in England or the US, or both.

A spokeswoman for Northumbria Police said: "At 2.12pm on Friday February 8, police received notification that a man had posted threatening information on Facebook.

"A 24-year-old man from South Shields has been arrested on suspicion of threats to kill and is currently in custody.

"The message is believed to have been posted on Wednesday. There is nothing to suggest it posed any physical threat to any school either here or in America."

Bobby Cox, Director of Warren County Schools in Tennessee, said: "As most of you are aware we received notice of violent threats directed at Warren County High School late Wednesday evening, February 6.

"We put an action plan together with the local authorities to ensure the safety of our schools and our campuses across the system.

"We wanted to make sure that we had all the facts before we sent a mass message out via our calling system to you.

"Currently the Sheriff's Department is working with the TBI and Homeland Security to trace down the person who posted this message.

"We have increased the presence of Police and Sheriff's Deputies in our schools today and tomorrow and all schools will limit access into each building to ensure the safety of our staff and students."

The Chattanooga Times Free Press reported police officers were posted to 11 schools in the area.

In December, gunman Adam Lanza killed 27 when he opened fire at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.

He died at the scene and the body of his mother, Nancy Lanza, was found at his family home. She had been shot in the face.

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Horsemeat Scandal: Aldi Takes Meals Off Shelves

Who's In Charge Of Keeping Food Safe?

Updated: 1:38pm UK, Friday 08 February 2013

There are a number of different agencies responsible for food labelling and safety in the UK.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is responsible for food standards legislation in England that is principally non-safety, and the Food Standards Agency (FSA) monitors standards that are safety based.

Food Standards Agency:

The FSA, a non-ministerial government department, is responsible for protecting public health in relation to food.

This includes food safety and hygiene, labelling for safety and allergies and food law enforcement.

It aims to:

1) make sure foods produced or sold in the UK are safe to eat

2) ensure imported food is safe to eat

3) make sure food producers and caterers give priority to consumer interests in relation to food

4) give consumers the information and understanding they need to make informed choices about where and what they eat

5) make sure regulation is effective, risk-based and proportionate, is clear about the responsibilities of food business operators, and protects consumers and their interests from fraud and other risks

6) ensure enforcement is effective, consistent, risk-based and proportionate and is focused on improving public health.

In the wake of the horsemeat scandal the FSA announced it is demanding a more comprehensive testing programme from food businesses.

Chief executive Catherine Brown said: 'Following our investigations into Findus products, the FSA is now requiring a more robust response from the food industry in order to demonstrate that the food it sells and serves is what it says it is on the label.

"We are demanding that food businesses conduct authenticity tests on all beef products, such as beef burgers, meatballs and lasagne, and provide the results to the FSA. The tests will be for the presence of significant levels of horsemeat."

There are separate FSAs for Scotland, Wales and the Irish Republic.

Defra:

In July 2010 food labelling was transferred from the FSA to Defra.

Food standards legislation sets out specific requirements for the labelling, composition and, in some cases, safety parameters for specific high value foodstuffs which are potentially at risk of being misleadingly substituted with lower quality alternatives.

The legislation makes sure consumers are not misled as to the nature of food products when it is sold to them.

It also makes the playing field level for food producers, so they have established standards they can work to when producing well known or traditional foodstuffs.

Most legislation on food standards is developed in Europe, with full involvement from UK Government officials.

Secondary legislation is then used to either implement the requirements or put in place enforcement powers, depending on the nature of the European legislation

Meat:

For a range of meat products there is legislation setting out specific compositional and labelling requirements.

The rules set out minimum meat content requirements for certain meat products sold using reserved descriptions such as sausages, burgers, corned beef, meat pies, pasties, etc.

In addition, there are very specific labelling rules for certain meat products that look like a cut, joint, slice, portion or carcass of meat.

Where any added water over certain limits as well as any added ingredients of different animal species to the rest of the meat must be mentioned in the name of the food.

Department of Health:

The DoH takes the lead on nutrition labelling police in England.

In October 2012 it announced proposals for front-of-pack nutrition labelling that displays how much fat, saturated fat, salt, sugar and calories foods contain.

This is colour-coded and shows a guideline daily amount.

The advertising of food is regulated by the Advertising Standards Authority.

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Manhunt For Ex-Cop Accused Of Killing Three

A huge manhunt is under way for a former Los Angeles policeman who is believed to have killed three people in revenge for his sacking.

Christopher Dorner, 33, is suspected of killing a former police captain's daughter and her fiance last weekend, and killing a police officer yesterday.

The search for 33-year-old stretches throughout Southern California and Nevada.

Dorner's burnt-out pickup truck has been found near Big Bear Lake ski resort, 80 miles east of Los Angeles, prompting the lockdown of schools and several buildings in the area.

Officers surround LAPD headquarters

San Bernardino county sheriff John McMahon said that 125 law enforcement officers were combing the area for Dorner and conducting door-to-door inquiries.

Christopher Dorner was sacked from the Los Angeles police force in 2008 and published a manifesto on his Facebook page promising to wage war on his former colleagues.

"I will bring unconventional and asymmetrical warfare to those in LAPD uniform whether on or off duty," said the manifesto.

"Unfortunately, I will not be alive to see my name cleared. That's what this is about, my name. A man is nothing without his name."

Police respond to the shooting in Riverside where one officer was killed

LAPD police chief Charlie Beck said Dorner, who has military training, has access to multiple weapons including an assault rifle, adding he should be considered "armed and extremely dangerous".

More than 40 protection officers have been dispatched to protect more than 40 potential targets across the region. The department has also pulled officers from motorbike duty, fearing they could make for easy targets.

Police say Dorner opened fire on police in this cruiser

Dorner is wanted in the killings of Monica Quan and her fiance, Keith Lawrence. They were found shot in their car at their condominium on Sunday night in Irvine, authorities said.

Ms Quan, 28, was an assistant women's basketball coach at Cal State Fullerton. Mr Lawrence, 27, was a public safety officer at the University of Southern California.

Ms Quan's father, a former LAPD captain who became a lawyer in retirement, represented Dorner in front of the Board of Rights, a tribunal that ruled against Dorner at the time of his dismissal in 2008, LAPD Captain William Hayes told The Associated Press.

Authorities also said Dorner opened fire early on Thursday on police in cities east of Los Angeles, killing an officer and wounding another.

Meanwhile, a wallet containing a detective badge and a picture ID belonging to Dorner was handed in to police in San Diego less than four hours after a man matching his description attempted to steal a 47-ft boat from the city's Shelter Island marina.

Monica Quan

San Diego detective Garry Hassen said the suspect tied up an 81-year-old man who was on the boat and then fled after the engine failed to start.

Nevada authorities have also joined the search for Dorner, who owns a house nine miles from the Las Vegas Strip, according to authorities and court records.

According to documents from a court of appeals hearing in October 2011, Dorner was fired from the LAPD after he made a complaint against his field training officer, Sgt Teresa Evans.

Dorner said that in the course of an arrest, Sgt Evans kicked suspect Christopher Gettler, a schizophrenic with severe dementia.

Richard Gettler, the schizophrenic man's father, gave testimony that supported Dorner's claim.

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Findus Beef Lasagne Meals 100% Horsemeat

Tests on Findus beef lasagne have revealed that some of the ready meals were made entirely from horsemeat.

Findus analysed 18 of its beef lasagne products and found 11 meals contained between 60% and 100% horsemeat, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) said.

There is no evidence to suggest the horsemeat found in the Findus beef lasagne is a food safety risk, the FSA said.

However, the agency has ordered urgent tests on the lasagne for the veterinary drug phenylbutazone. Meat from animals treated with "bute" is not allowed to enter the food chain in Britain as it may pose a risk to human health.

All food companies have been told to test their beef products, with the FSA saying it was "highly likely" that criminal activity was to blame for the contamination.

Consumers who have purchased the ready meals - produced by French food supplier Comigel on behalf of Findus - have been advised by the FSA not to eat them and return them to the shop they were bought from.

Retail giant Tesco and discount chain Aldi have already withdrawn a range of ready meals produced by Comigel over fears they contained contaminated meat.

Findus UK has already started a full recall of its lasagne products. It withdrew its 320g, 360g and 500g lasagne meals from supermarket shelves as a precautionary measure earlier this week.

It came after Comigel alerted Findus and Aldi that their products "do not conform to specification".

It advised them to remove Findus beef lasagne and Aldi's Today's Special frozen beef lasagne and Today's Special frozen spaghetti bolognese.

Shoppers who have bought the product can get a full refund, says Findus

Findus UK apologised to customers "for any inconvenience caused" - and said anyone who bought the affected lasagne products could get a full refund.

A spokesman said: "We understand this is a very sensitive subject for consumers and we would like to reassure you we have reacted immediately. We do not believe this to be a food safety issue.

"We are confident that we have fully resolved this supply chain issue. Fully compliant beef lasagne will be in stores again soon."

Tesco also decided to withdraw its Everyday Value spaghetti bolognese, which is produced at the same Comigel site.

A Tesco spokesman said: "We are aware of the results of the Findus tests and we will of course assist Findus with their recall process.

"Tests on our frozen Everyday Value spaghetti bolognese product are ongoing under our new DNA testing programme. We will inform our customers of the results as soon as possible."

The FSA, Defra and the Department of Health are working with businesses and trade bodies to enforce food safety and assess whether there are significant levels of improperly described meat in a whole series of processed beef products in the UK, including supplies to schools and hospitals.

Environment Secretary Owen Paterson said: "The presence of unauthorised ingredients cannot be tolerated ... the responsibility and for the safety and authenticity of food lies with those who produce it, and who sell or provide it to the final consumer."

Labour has accused ministers of being "asleep on the job" and has called for a police investigation into what it believes is fraud.

Shadow environment secretary Mary Creagh said she was "shocked and appalled" by the latest revelations.

She told Sky News: "The time has come for government ministers to pull their heads out of the sand and to take some swift action.

"We have had three weeks of damaging revelations about what is happening in the meat industry ... there is evidence that criminal gangs are involved in this, and frankly I cannot believe that the Government hasn't called in the police to investigate this in the UK.

"I don't see how we get to the bottom of it without getting in specialist teams and working out who is behind this fraud and why it is happening."

People must have confidence that the food they buy is properly labelled, legal and safe to eat, she added.

Anyone who has purchased a Findus beef lasagne can call the firm's UK customer care line on 0800 132584, those in the Republic of Ireland, 1800 800500, or email careline@findus.co.uk for a full refund.

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Michael Gove In 'U-Turn' On Scrapping GCSEs

Education Secretary Michael Gove has been forced to abandon his flagship plan to scrap GCSEs and replace them with a new English Baccalaureate, according to reports.

The move was said to follow pressure from within the coalition from the Liberal Democrats and criticism from MPs across the political spectrum.

Last week the cross-party Commons Education Committee said the Government had "not proved its case" that GCSEs should be abolished in key academic subjects.

Labour said that it was a "humiliating climbdown" for Mr Gove, one of the most high-profile members of the Cabinet.

He will reportedly go before the Commons later to set out alternative GCSE reforms - reducing the role played by course work.

He had originally wanted to introduce the new EBacc certificate in England in the five core academic areas of English, maths, science, languages and humanities - history or geography.

Each of the core subjects would have been handed to a single examination board - a move he argued was essential to prevent boards "dumbing down" standards to attract more schools.

However, according to reports in The Independent and The Daily Telegraph, officials warned the plan could fall foul of EU procurement rules.

Shadow education secretary Stephen Twigg said Mr Gove should have listened to warnings that the scheme would not work.

"This is a humiliating climbdown from Michael Gove," he said.

"It shows why he should have listened to business leaders, headteachers and experts in the first place and not come up with a plan on the back of an envelope.

"Pupils and parents need certainty now. Michael Gove must now make clear whether he will abandon his narrow, out of date plans altogether or merely try to delay them.

"He needs to go back to the drawing board and develop a curriculum and exam system that meets our future challenges as a country.

"Labour wants to work with the Government to forge a long term consensus on exam and curriculum reform. We would welcome cross party talks."

A Department for Education source said: "We do not comment on leaks. Mr Gove will make a statement to the House tomorrow."

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'Neglected' Pensioner's Death Investigated

Police are investigating the death of a pensioner who was left without care in her own home for nine days.

Gloria Foster, 81, was found suffering from dehydration and starvation after going without the four daily visits she was supposed to have.

She had been receiving help in her own home in Banstead, Surrey, from Carefirst24. But Surrey County Council became responsible for her care after a number of its workers were arrested last month following a UK Border Agency (UKBA) raid.

Surrey Police said officers are now looking into the circumstances surrounding the incident after Mrs Foster died in hospital on Monday.

Ms Foster was found starving at her home in Banstead, Surrey

Sky News reporter Charlotte Lomas-Farley said Ms Foster, who had no family, had been receiving care for four years and had deteriorated rapidly.

She said: "Neighbours who knew Gloria well said they're deeply shocked at the news of her death.

"They said she was a quiet lady who kept herself to herself but was also independent as she could be."

A police spokesman said: "Concerns surrounding Gloria's care were raised to Surrey Police at the end of January by staff at the hospital where she died on Monday, February 4, and officers are now looking into the circumstances surrounding her death.

"The Surrey Safeguarding Adults Board has also been convened and they are conducting a parallel investigation."

A spokesman for UKBA said it met local authorities ahead of the raid to warn them of what they were going to do so they could arrange alternative care for the company's clients.

Its officers arrested six people, including a Mauritian man and a Filipino man and woman, on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud and conspiracy to assist foreign nationals at Carefirst24's headquarters in Upper Mulgrave Road, Sutton, on January 15 and at a separate south London address the day before.

All those arrested were later bailed until various dates in April.

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Families Of Victims Speak Of Stafford Neglect

By David Crabtree, Midlands Correspondent

The families of three patients that died at Stafford Hospital have spoken of the neglect and failings there.

It was March 2010 when 61-year-old Alan Nash walked into Stafford Hospital for a routine colonoscopy.

Inquiries were already underway into a scandal, which suggested that between 2005 and 2008 up to 1,200 patients may have died needlessly.

As a result the Nash family believed the standards of care would be high. But Mr Nash's bowel was perforated and he died the same day.

His daughter Marie Hillman said: "We felt that all eyes would be on Stafford Hospital so there would not be any mistakes. Obviously it is one of the biggest regrets I have that we talked him into going."

Alan Nash with his family

His wife Jenny Nash: "I don't exactly know where the room is where they do the colonoscopy. But I was just sitting in the waiting room and it is not a big area anyway.

"I did hear. It was just like somebody had been punched in the stomach where you get that gasp, if you like and it was quite loud. I think that is when they actually perforated it."

Ms Hillman said: "He had gone into hospital for a routine diagnosis. It was just like a nightmare. A nurse said to me, you will probably find that this happened at home. This happened before he came in.

"And I thought there is no way. Dad walked into the hospital, there is no way this happened at home."

The family thought that they were trying to blame Mr Nash and "pass the buck".

His wife said: "I wasn't with him at the time I was outside. I didn't know he was going to die."

Ms Hillman maintains that there has been no apology at all.

Doreen Duff died at the hospital in 2008

She said: "We would like more answers. We would like reassurance that steps have been put in place that would prevent this from happening to somebody else. But we haven't had that as of today."

In the case, the hospital did not accept that it had breached its duty of care.

Doreen Duff had already suffered a stroke before she moved to Stafford and came under the care of the local hospital.

She developed asthma and other complications and used the Accident and Emergency on a number of occasions before she was admitted. Doreen was 64 when she died in 2008.

Her husband James Duff said: "The A&E department was just chaotic. You couldn't get a doctor. If you did see one they would go off once they had seen you and they wouldn't come back until they had time again. Short staffed, rude, very, very dirty.

Ellen Hazeldine died from a superbug at the hospital

"At one time she was discharged from A&E and was back in A&E within an hour. She suffered more strokes and was eventually paralysed from the neck down and couldn't speak.

"When Doreen went in she was quite a bubbly person and had quite a good quality of life. She had lost the use of her left side but she had still got all the right side and she was as bright as a button.

"When she came out she was paralysed from the neck down, couldn't speak and everything had just gone. That was just because of the care she received in Stafford Hospital, a lack of care. Not giving her medication, not given the proper fluids and left in a bed that is wet, in your own faeces.

"After what we have all been through, the relatives of these, the care still isn't as it should be. They are still getting complaints coming through."

Deb Hazeldine suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder because of her 67-year-old mother Ellen's death from the hospital superbug c-difficile at Stafford Hospital.

"I will never get over it," said Ms Hazeldine who admits that she still struggles to cope more than six years after her loss.

Deb Hazeldine is still reeling from her mother Ellen's death at Stafford

She said: "My mum was diagnosed with bone cancer in March of 2006. She had some aggressive chemotherapy and unfortunately she suffered a fall at home.

"She didn't sustain any injuries at that point and she was taken into mid-staffs where she was told she would need physio and rehabilitation just to get her back on her feet."

Her mother was put onto an open ward despite a family request for her to have a side room or an isolation wing.

"She very quickly contacted c-diff and MRSA. She died from c-diff. She was sitting in a bed in a ward and I was sitting opposite her. We were chatting and faeces fell and covered half of the floor. Obviously it was at visiting time and other people were looking across. My mum just started to quietly cry.

"She was mortified that she was in this state. I looking for a nurse and pressed the buzzer and after about five minutes nobody came.

"I got down on my hands and knees and I started to clean it. I couldn't let my mum sit there like that. 

"When she died we had a call from the undertakers that stated that mum had so many hospital infections that the hospital said she had to be buried in a sealed body bag because she would contaminate the ground she went into.

"Even now we are hearing of complaints that there is lack of support on the wards, these families are still raising the same concerns as I was raising six years ago, of having to go in and support their loved ones.

"I don't understand that six years on, I really don't understand that."

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Stafford Hospital Report To Change Face Of NHS

Victims' Families Speak Of Failures

Updated: 1:06am UK, Wednesday 06 February 2013

By David Crabtree, Midlands Correspondent

The families of three patients that died at Stafford Hospital have spoken of the neglect and failings there.

It was March 2010 when 61-year-old Alan Nash walked into Stafford Hospital for a routine colonoscopy.

Inquiries were already underway into a scandal, which suggested that between 2005 and 2008 up to 1,200 patients may have died needlessly.

As a result the Nash family believed the standards of care would be high. But Mr Nash's bowel was perforated and he died the same day.

His daughter Marie Hillman said: "We felt that all eyes would be on Stafford Hospital so there would not be any mistakes. Obviously it is one of the biggest regrets I have that we talked him into going."

His wife Jenny Nash: "I don't exactly know where the room is where they do the colonoscopy. But I was just sitting in the waiting room and it is not a big area anyway.

"I did hear. It was just like somebody had been punched in the stomach where you get that gasp, if you like and it was quite loud. I think that is when they actually perforated it."

Ms Hillman said: "He had gone into hospital for a routine diagnosis. It was just like a nightmare. A nurse said to me, you will probably find that this happened at home. This happened before he came in.

"And I thought there is no way. Dad walked into the hospital, there is no way this happened at home."

The family thought that they were trying to blame Mr Nash and "pass the buck".

His wife said: "I wasn't with him at the time I was outside. I didn't know he was going to die."

Ms Hillman maintains that there has been no apology at all.

She said: "We would like more answers. We would like reassurance that steps have been put in place that would prevent this from happening to somebody else. But we haven't had that as of today."

In the case, the hospital did not accept that it had breached its duty of care.

Doreen Duff had already suffered a stroke before she moved to Stafford and came under the care of the local hospital.

She developed asthma and other complications and used the Accident and Emergency on a number of occasions before she was admitted. Doreen was 64 when she died in 2008.

Her husband James Duff said: "The A&E department was just chaotic. You couldn't get a doctor. If you did see one they would go off once they had seen you and they wouldn't come back until they had time again. Short staffed, rude, very, very dirty.

"At one time she was discharged from A&E and was back in A&E within an hour. She suffered more strokes and was eventually paralysed from the neck down and couldn't speak.

"When Doreen went in she was quite a bubbly person and had quite a good quality of life. She had lost the use of her left side but she had still got all the right side and she was as bright as a button.

"When she came out she was paralysed from the neck down, couldn't speak and everything had just gone. That was just because of the care she received in Stafford Hospital, a lack of care. Not giving her medication, not given the proper fluids and left in a bed that is wet, in your own faeces.

"After what we have all been through, the relatives of these, the care still isn't as it should be. They are still getting complaints coming through."

Deb Hazeldine suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder because of her 67-year-old mother Ellen's death from the hospital superbug c-difficile at Stafford Hospital.

"I will never get over it," said Ms Hazeldine who admits that she still struggles to cope more than six years after her loss.

She said: "My mum was diagnosed with bone cancer in March of 2006. She had some aggressive chemotherapy and unfortunately she suffered a fall at home.

"She didn't sustain any injuries at that point and she was taken into mid-staffs where she was told she would need physio and rehabilitation just to get her back on her feet."

Her mother was put onto an open ward despite a family request for her to have a side room or an isolation wing.

"She very quickly contacted c-diff and MRSA. She died from c-diff. She was sitting in a bed in a ward and I was sitting opposite her. We were chatting and faeces fell and covered half of the floor. Obviously it was at visiting time and other people were looking across. My mum just started to quietly cry.

"She was mortified that she was in this state. I looking for a nurse and pressed the buzzer and after about five minutes nobody came.

"I got down on my hands and knees and I started to clean it. I couldn't let my mum sit there like that. 

"When she died we had a call from the undertakers that stated that mum had so many hospital infections that the hospital said she had to be buried in a sealed body bag because she would contaminate the ground she went into.

"Even now we are hearing of complaints that there is lack of support on the wards, these families are still raising the same concerns as I was raising six years ago, of having to go in and support their loved ones.

"I don't understand that six years on, I really don't understand that."

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