Plymouth Hospitals Trust, based at the city's Derriford Hospital, was found to have "serious irregularities" in the way it handled its lists.

Its chief executive and deputy chief executive both resigned over the scandal, and the new boss, Paul Roberts, admitted there had been "systematic failures" and pockets of "unacceptable performance."

The problems were revealed when a Department of Health audit showed that 90 patients who had been waiting over the government's limit of 18 months had "disappeared" from the waiting lists.

It was later found that many more patients than usual were removed from the main list and placed on "suspended" lists, normally reserved for those who cannot have surgery for medical or personal reasons.

The vast majority of the 90 patients who "disappeared" from the lists had been waiting more than 18 months for plastic surgery.

Experienced surgeon

The plastic surgery department at Derriford was hit by the loss of experienced plastic surgeon Dr Judy Evans, who took voluntary leave almost 12 months ago during an investigation into some parts of her work.

The trust maintains that the non-availability of Dr Evans was only one factor in the huge number of patients waiting too long for surgery.