Mr Eeley has accused the hospital of 'cynically massaging figures'

Only those judged to be desperately in need of cardiac catheter ablation - which corrects irregular heartbeats - will be seen at the John Radcliffe hospital in Oxford.

The trust says it needs to make budget savings but critics accuse it of putting waiting list targets before patient welfare.

When Tony Blair had treatment to correct an irregular heartbeat he was back running the country within days looking, as aides said at the time, "fresh and alert".

For Stephen Eeley, who needs the same procedure, the outlook is far less rosy.

He has been kicked off the waiting list at John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, and now faces a future feeling "tired and breathless".

I'm furious. I waited patiently, having been told they would definitely perform this operation Stephen Eeley Minister slams trust

Mr Eeley said: "At the age of 58, that's what I have to look forward to for the rest of my life."

The Oxford University administrator said: "This is exactly the same thing that Tony Blair suffered.

"To suffer what he suffered and to have no recourse to anybody is very extremely frustrating. They sorted him (Blair) out immediately."

Another factor which adds to Mr Eeley's sense of injustice is the fact he has never smoked and, with wife Paulette, kept fit with regular hiking holidays, swimming and running.

Gasping for breath

These simple pursuits now look like a thing of the past as he cannot climb his stairs at home without gasping for breath.

CATHETER ABLATION A wire catheter is fed in through a vein in the groin, up to the heart Electrical sensors at the tip of the catheter allow the surgeon to find the short circuit The catheter then delivers electrical pulses which destroy - ablate - the short circuit

"I'm furious. I waited patiently, having been told they would definitely perform this operation. Then I was told I no longer fitted the right 'criteria'."

Mr Eeley said the hospital told him in June that the procedure would be carried out before the end of October.

But in September he received a letter saying the waiting list was being extended due to faulty equipment.

Then, in November, he says he was sent another which said he "no longer fitted the requirements" for treatment.

"It's very cynical that the Radcliffe Hospital have chosen [to discontinue] this particular procedure, which I understand they do very well. It's a short-term fix to massage figures.

"This is not a life-threatening condition but it is a condition that massively reduces quality of life.