DOCTORS have echoed the Health Concern campaign in their ferocious attack on the Government, Dr Taylor said.

The British Medical Association attacked the Government for its "gimmicky initiatives" for the health service and warned a despairing medical profession was on the point of cracking up.

Association chairman Ian Bogle accused the Government of being "opaque and unclear" in its intentions over health at its annual conference this week.

He said: "Things can't get much worse.

"We are cynical about spin without substance and about gimmicks that distort clinical priorities and suck funds away from areas of genuine need."

Doctors also delivered a broadside against the Private Finance Initiative, which is funding the new Worcester hospital, and rationing in the health service.

Dr Taylor said: "This echoes our campaign of openness, fairness and the fight against spin.

"The Private Finance Initiative is wholly bad. As regards public/private partnership my gut reaction is that this too is bad because you are taking consultants out of the NHS.

"However, at the moment there is spare capacity in the private sector and none in the NHS so in the short-term it is logical to allow some NHS work to be done in the private sector.

"But in the long-term we should be pouring money into the NHS not the private sector because we need to build the NHS up."