Sacked hospital chief's MP bid falls flat

Gary Walker, who was sacked by United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust in February, fell short of the 2 per cent of the vote required to get his deposit back, with 0.5 per cent.

The trust’s given reason for dismissing Mr Walker was that he swore in meetings, but he claims he was sacked for putting patients before targets. He has launched a claim for unfair dismissal.

In March he announced he would stand against then health minister Gillian Merron in her Lincoln seat. At the time he said: “Under the current government the NHS has become obsessed with targets and has created a culture of fear.”

Ms Merron lost her seat to Conservative candidate Karl McCartney, who won by 1,058 votes.