Bupa is one of eight private companies, some from abroad, which have been approved to manage failing NHS hospitals.

The government published the list, which includes 62 high-performing NHS trusts, on Thursday.

Three hospitals judged to be failing, the United Bristol Healthcare NHS Trust, the Royal United Hospital Bath NHS Trust and Good Hope Hospital, Birmingham, will have new management teams drafted in.

Bristol and Bath were given "no-star" ratings in this year's hospital league tables, and Good Hope was downgraded to a no-star after an investigation into the mismanagement of waiting list figures.

Private companies on the list

BMI Healthcare Bupa Hospitals Capio Healthcare UK Hospitalia Activ Health Interhealth Canada Quo Health Secta Group Serco Health

The decision to allow private firms to run failing NHS hospitals has been described as "shameful" by former Health Secretary Frank Dobson.

In addition to five private British firms, one German, one Canadian and one Swedish company have been accepted onto the NHS Franchise Register, drawn up by the NHS Appointments Commission.

The Department of Health stressed franchises will be offered for the management of failing hospitals, not their ownership.

Those named on the register will be invited to tender for the franchises early in the new year.

Teams of senior managers will be drafted in to work with the existing teams.

The hospital board and local health bodies will decide what problems the hospital has, and potential managers will say what they would achieve, and how they were going to achieve it.

'Slippery slope'

Health Secretary Alan Milburn said: "No NHS hospital should be left to sink or swim.

"No NHS hospital should be denied the best management expertise available if that can improve the standards of care NHS patients receive."

He added: "Because improving every part of the NHS is so important we are determined to draw on management expertise from outside the NHS too."

Hospitals affected

United Bristol Healthcare NHS Trust Royal United Hospital Bath NHS Trust Good Hope Hospital, Birmingham

But his predecessor Frank Dobson said: "I think it's the beginning of a slippery slope, I don't think we've got a mandate to do it.

"I don't think we've ever discussed it within the Labour Party, nor have we discussed it with the British people.

"The new outside managements can only come from outside sources, either private hospitals, which are usually so small that they have very little relevant experience to run a large NHS hospital, or former NHS managers.

"Some of these will not necessarily have left in the most glorious circumstances."

'Struggle'

Anthony McKeever, from Quo Health, one of the private companies to win approval, said: "We do have a team of experienced NHS managers. Like myself they are people who have devoted the greater part of their careers to healthcare and the NHS."

David Hinchliffe, chair of the Health Select Committee, said; "I've got no objection in principle to bringing in an outside team to address problems at failing hospitals.

"My concern is that the list that's published includes the private sector and people from outside the UK.

New management - whether from the public or private sector - is important but is no magic bullet Nigel Edwards, NHS Confederation

"I'm very concerned that organisations that have no public sector ethos and, particularly no experience of the UK health system and will struggle to address some of the issues in these hospitals."

Other MPs have criticised the government's decision to publish the list as a written answer.

Shadow Health Secretary Dr Liam Fox said: "Today's announcement represents another step in Alan Milburn's Road to Damascus conversion to market forces."

Lord Clement-Jones, Liberal Democrat health spokesman in the House of Lords, said: "This latest wheeze from the Health Secretary will not work.

"He�s just shifting the blame away from Whitehall and onto hospital managers. They must not be scapegoats for government failure.

Experience

Union leaders have criticised the idea of allowing private managers to come in to the NHS.

Ian Ducat, of Unison, said: "There's no evidence that managers of small health organisations, Bupa or anything else, have the skills and the experience to run organisations that are as complex as the NHS."

And Nigel Edwards, policy director for the NHS Confederation, which has published its own report on how failing hospitals can be turned around, warned: "You have got to get the diagnosis right before you start treatment.

"New management - whether from the public or private sector - is important but is no magic bullet.

"We need a more sophisticated approach which understands why organisations fail, recognises the early warning signs, and provides more effective support."

In May this year, senior NHS managers were appointed to run four hospitals classified as failing in the 2001 hospital ratings.

They were:

Ashford and St Peter's NHS Trust

Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust

Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust

Barnet and Chase Farm NHS Trust, London