Flagship NHS clinic faces axe

A flagship surgical centre set up to reduce waiting lists faces closure within a month after failing to attract enough patients, it was revealed today.

The clinic at the Central Middlesex Hospital was hailed as the way forward for the NHS and was described by Tony Blair as "a brand new type of hospital".

But five years on, the clinic is working at half capacity because of lack of demand.

This comes after the Standard revealed that hospitals are doing half the operations they could in some areas of London because the local NHS has run out of money.