Nurses are being asked to join the hospital board

The government hopes to overturn nurses' objections to foundation hospitals by persuading them to take key management roles.

Health Minister John Hutton urged them to take on roles as hospital governors in a speech at the Royal College of Nursing's Annual Congress in Harrogate.

But the meeting had earlier voted to end the "creeping privatisation" of the NHS, and attacked the concept of foundation hospitals.

It is not privatisation - it is democratisation Health Minister John Hutton

If hospitals become foundation trusts, they will become responsible for their own finances, and will be able to borrow extra funds.

The RCN has warned patient care could suffer, and that staff could be attracted to foundation trusts to the detriment of other local hospitals.

The RCN also cast doubt on whether the agreed Agenda for Change pay deal, which should see nurses pay rise by 15.8% over three years, would actually reach nurses' pockets.

Beverley Malone, RCN General Secretary, said: "We have delivered on Agenda for Change. Are we going to be taken seriously?

"Yes, we have come a long way, but no we are not satisfied, no we are not content."

Patient care

Mr Hutton said increased nurse involvement in the running of the hospital would lead to improvements on the wards, in nursing and across the whole hospital.

The Health and Social Care Bill, which will soon have its second reading, will give NHS staff the opportunity to elect representatives to the hospital board.

He said foundation hospitals would lead to a better service, better care for patients and better working conditions for nurses and other staff.

Blair's foundation hospital battle

Mr Hutton said all NHS hospitals would have the opportunity to become an foundation trust.

He said: "We expect nurses will be among those staff elected to serve as hospital governors in NHS foundation hospitals.

"Hospital governors elected by staff will work alongside governors directly elected by local people.

"In this way NHS hospitals will become more accountable to the local communities they serve."

He defended the plan to introduce foundation hospitals, denying it was a way of privatising the NHS.

"There will be no opting out of the NHS. No NHS patient will be charged for their treatment.

"It is not privatisation. It is democratisation, keeping the NHS a public service but ensuring for the first time in the history of the NHS genuine public ownership and staff involvement."

But Maura Buchanon, deputy president of the RCN, said: "If they get more money, do they widen the gap between the ones that are struggling. Do they attract more staff?

"Does it make hospitals that don't get that money fall even further behind?"

In his speech to the RCN, Mr Hutton made a series of other pledges to nurses, including an increase in student bursaries, and a new hardship fund for students in debt.

He also promised a review of the NHS Pension Scheme and an extension of the nurse prescribing scheme.