The number of people who have to be re-admitted to hospital as emergency cases just weeks after being discharged has jumped sharply.

The increase raises fears that some people are being discharged from hospital too soon - possibly to free up beds in an under-pressure service.

New statistics for 2000-01 show the situation has "significantly deteriorated" across England, compared with 1999-2000.

The figures also reveal that the problem of "bed-blocking" is not disappearing despite the Government pouring in �300 million over the next three years to help free up much-needed beds.

Emergency re-admissions within 28 days

Trusts whose performance has deteriorated significantly: Medway, Kent Isle of Wight Healthcare Mid Cheshire Hospital King's Mill Centre for Health Care Services, Notts Trafford Healthcare Luton & Dunstable Hospital North East Lincolnshire Bromley Hospitals Kings Lynn & Wisbech Hospitals Royal Shrewsbury Hospitals Chesterfield and N Derbyshire Royal Hospital

The figures are contained in extensive performance indicators for 2000-01 published by the Department of Health.

They show how health authorities and individual hospital trusts in England are performing across nearly 80 measures.

For the first time they give comparisons with previous years.

The data does reveal some success stories.

There has been a significant reduction in the number of people who die within 30 days of planned surgery.

More patients are surviving colon, lung and breast cancer.

And fewer people are dying in the 30 days following emergency surgery.

However, rates vary enormously across the country. In some health authority areas the rate is almost twice as high as in others.

There has been a reduction in the proportion of women undergoing cervical screening.

Highest rate

St Helens and Knowsley Health Authority has the highest rate of emergency re-admission in the country. Some 7.42% of its patients are re-admitted as emergencies within 28 days.

A further 27 health authorities are doing "significantly poorer" than average.

The lowest rate - 4.78% - was recorded by Kingston and Richmond Health Authority.

Bed blocking continues to be a major problem for the NHS. Overall 6% of patients had their discharge from hospital delayed.

The highest rate was recorded by South Essex, where 15.1% of patients were prevented from leaving hospital because no alternative facilities were available.

The figures also reveal wide variations across a clutch of other indicators.

The proportion of people who died within 30 days of emergency surgery ranged from 3,936.31 per 100,000 patients in Barnsley to 1,589.66 per 100,000 patients in Croydon.

In Dorset Health Authority 99.3% of patients wait less than six months for an inpatient admission, but in West Surrey the figure is just 62%.

Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich, south east London, had the worst record in the country for trolley waits.

Some 82.28% of patients admitted through A&E were not placed in a bed on a ward within four hours of the decision to admit.

In contrast, not one patient at South Durham Health Care had to wait more than four hours.

Political reaction

Worst trolley waits

Percentage of patients admitted through A&E not placed in a bed on a ward within four hours: Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woolwich 82.28% Royal Surrey County & St Luke's Hospital 66.44% Bromley Hospitals 64.64% Brighton Health Care 54.35% Surrey & Sussex Healthcare 54.95% Dartford & Gravesham 49.23% West Middlesex University Hospital 46.72% Princess Alexandra Hospital, Harrow 45.78% Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells 44.36% Royal West Sussex 41.99% St Mary's, Paddington 41.67%

Shadow health secretary Dr Liam Fox blamed ministers for the "alarming level" of emergency re-admissions.

He said: "Labour's chronic mismanagement of the care home sector means hospitals have very many of their beds blocked by patients who have no where else to go.

"More and more patients are waiting to get into hospital and trusts are therefore under enormous pressure to discharge patients as quickly as possible."

Liberal Democrat health spokesman Dr Evan Harris said: "Hospital readmission statistics are a damning indictment of the way government targets have forced trusts to discharge patients too early, in order to get trolley waiters in."

The NHS Confederation said the new indicators would aid managers in their attempts to ratchet up standards.

Every hospital and health authority will receive an individual report showing where performance needs to be improved.