NHS England chair Sir Malcolm Grant possesses many of the characteristics which allowed former BBC presenter Des Lynam to be widely viewed as the suavest man in public life for a good couple of decades.
He’s well groomed, sports a dashing ‘tache and always shows a good half an inch of cuff.
But his ice-cool credentials were given a stern test at the Health Efficiency Through Technology Expo 2013 event in London on Tuesday.
With minister for chest hair Dr Dan Poulter running late for his slot, Sir Malcolm agreed to an extended Q&A session in a valiant effort to make sure there was no dead air.
“He’s a good sport,” ventured the event’s chair, Kingsley Manning.
The smooth Kiwi effortlessly batted away questions on a range of issues, including about NHS England’s vacant CEO position (a “fascinating process” he noted) - but it was one of Sir Malcolm’s earlier observations which sticks in the memory.
Talking about NHS England’s desire to be transparent he pledged that he would lead an organisation that did “its business in public”.
Surely even the most devoted transparency evangelists would concede certain events should remain behind closed doors?
End Game urges NHS England to stick with its current protocol of keeping its board meeting divided into two parts, with “number two” agenda items taking place taking place in private.
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