NHS watchdog resigns two months into job

The head of a new government inspectorate to monitor NHS standards has resigned two months after he was appointed. Peter Homa, who was to be the £150,000-a-year chief of the Commission for Health Audit and Inspection when it starts next April, has clashed with the shadow chairman, Sir Ian Kennedy.

The inspectorate is to replace the Commission of Health Improvement (CHI) and will monitor standards in the private sector as well. Mr Homa, chief executive of CHI, is widely admired in the NHS and colleagues expressed shock at his departure.

Dame Deidre Hine, outgoing chairman of CHI, said she was saddened. "Peter's personal qualities of leadership and integrity and his unrivalled experience and expertise made him the obvious and ideal choice for the chief inspector post. He will be very difficult to replace."

Sir Ian Kennedy, former professor of medical law and ethics at King's College and University College, London, led the inquiry into the Bristol babies heart surgery which led to the establishment of CHAI. A tough-minded barrister who does not suffer fools, his clash with the diffident, understated Mr Homa is said to have been one of style rather than substance.