No 10 accused of blocking Nick Hardwick’s appointment as health ombudsman

Former Parole Board chair resigned in 2018 when judges overturned a decision to release serial rapist John Worboys

No 10 has been accused of blocking the appointment of a new health ombudsman, after a panel proposed Nick Hardwick, a former Parole Board chair who resigned when judges overturned a decision to release serial rapist John Worboys.

The prime minister was sent Hardwick's name for approval in January, after a six-month process by a House of Commons-appointed recruitment panel in which he was selected as the top contender on a shortlist of three.