Paediatrician guilty of misconduct

The controversial child abuse expert who accused solicitor Sally Clark's husband of murdering their two babies was today found guilty of serious professional misconduct.

Professor David Southall was told he must not engage in any aspect of child protection work either in or outside the NHS for three years.

The General Medical Council's professional conduct committee made its decision after hearing evidence that the 56-year-old paediatrician behaved in an " irresponsible and misleading" way by filing a report on Stephen Clark based on seeing him in a television documentary.

Mr Clark said in a statement he took "no satisfaction" from the ruling. "The sole purpose of bringing my complaint, four long years ago, was to try to ensure that no other innocent parent is ever again falsely accused of harming their children," he said.

But he hoped the decision would send a "strong message ... that irresponsible and reckless allegations of child abuse against innocent parents are simply not acceptable".

After viewing the documentary, Southall contacted police to say he believed Mr Clark to be a double murderer and a serious threat to the Clarks' third child. Mrs Clark, 39, was cleared last year after having wrongly served four years in jail for the murder of two of her children.

GMC tribunal chairman Denis McDevitt told Southall his conduct had been "an abuse of your professional position". He said the doctor had not taken reasonable steps to verify his statement before he signed the report on the Clarks.

His "false allegation" had led to substantial stress for Mr Clark and his family, and could have led to a child being taken back into care unnecessarily and Mr Clark prosecuted.

"The committee are concerned that at no time have you seen fit to withdraw these allegations or to offer any apology," the chairman said.