BBC News – Ex CQC-head ‘declined to talk to police investigation’
Documents seen by the BBC show that officers in Cumbria asked to speak to
Cynthia Bower and two other named officials at England’s health watchdog.
Police were investigating the death of baby Joshua Titcombe at the
hospital.
But the CQC told police Ms Bower and a second official had no day-to-day
involvement in the case.
They added that witness statements would therefore not “add any value to the
investigation”.
The details of the police enquiries are revealed in email correspondence over
four days in January 2012.
In one message, a detective says: “I have listed the names of the people I
need to speak to and the reason for obtaining a statement.”
Ms Bower’s name is then listed alongside the names of two other senior
officials at the watchdog with the sentence: “I need to obtain a statement from
you and your involvement in the CQC investigation.”
The police acknowledge that the individuals may only have been copied into
emails about the case and in which case a statement would not be required.
A CQC official later tells the police that Ms Bower and another official did
not have “direct day to day involvement” with the case, and would only have been
copied into correspondence about it as a matter of procedure.
The CQC official then says that neither Ms Bower nor another official “are
able to furnish police with witness statements that would add any value to the
investigation”.
‘Series of errors’
Cumbria police were looking into the case of nine-day-old Joshua Titcombe who
died from a treatable infection after being born at the maternity ward of
Furness General Hospital.
Joshua Titcombe died nine days
after being born at Furness General Hospital
A coroner’s report identified a series of errors by medical staff and police
later widened their inquiry to include the deaths of a number of other babies at
the hospital.
This week an independent report into the CQC’s handling of events at the
local health trust in Morecambe Bay was highly critical of the watchdog, listing
a series of failures and “missed opportunities”.
The report also found evidence of an alleged cover-up, in which Ms Bower was
said to be present at a meeting where an instruction was given to delete an
internal review critical of the CQC.
Ms Bower denies having any note or recollection of the instruction being to
given to delete a report and says she would have countermanded it.
The meeting is said to have taken place in March 2012, less than two months
after the exchange of emails between the CQC and Cumbria Police.
Joshua Titcombe’s father James says he was “surprised” when he first learned
that police didn’t see any value in a witness statement from Cynthia Bower,
describing the situation as “questionable”.
“There’s an urgent need now for police to investigate Cynthia Bower’s
actions,” he said.
Cumbria police say they were not investigating the CQC and they obtained
witness statements from those people they needed to speak to at the
watchdog.
In a statement the force says: “Any decisions regarding investigating the CQC
will be considered in due course when all the relevant information is
available.”
The CQC says it stands by its position from last year regarding witness
statements to Cumbria Police.
Ms Bower could not be reached for comment regarding the decision not to give
police a witness statement.
Remember that next time a police officer asks you for an opinion or a signature. You don’t have to give one.
