BRITAIN'S most senior doctor arrived at the Neale inquiry last week and said he wanted to assist in every way possible.

Sir Liam Donaldson, the Government's chief medical officer, is a witness at the inquiry into the way complaints about disgraced gynaecologist Richard Neale were handled.

"I felt that it was very important for me to come and be one of the witnesses, because I want to help in every way I can," said Prof Donaldson, who was a senior manager in the region's health service at the time the Neale scandal came to a head in the Nineties.

The inquiry was ordered by former Health Secretary Alan Milburn to look into the way the NHS handled large numbers of complaints against Neale while he worked at the Friarage Hospital, in Northallerton, from 1985 to 1995, and at other UK hospitals.

Neale was struck off in 2000 by the General Medical Council after allegations were proven that he had botched operations.

Read more about the Richard Neale scandal here.