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| Version 4 | Version 5 |
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| Betsi Cadwaladr health board chief executive suspended | Betsi Cadwaladr health board chief executive suspended |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The chief executive of a health board placed in special measures has been suspended with immediate effect. | The chief executive of a health board placed in special measures has been suspended with immediate effect. |
| Betsi Cadwaladr chairman Peter Higson said the suspension of Prof Trevor Purt was a "neutral act" while arrangements for special measures were sorted out. | Betsi Cadwaladr chairman Peter Higson said the suspension of Prof Trevor Purt was a "neutral act" while arrangements for special measures were sorted out. |
| Health Minister Mark Drakeford said Simon Dean, deputy chief executive of NHS Wales, would be asked to step in as "accountable officer". | |
| A group of "key individuals" was also being set to to provide expert advice. | |
| 'Watershed day' | 'Watershed day' |
| A report found "institutional abuse" at the Tawel Fan mental health ward in Glan Clwyd Hospital, Denbighshire. | A report found "institutional abuse" at the Tawel Fan mental health ward in Glan Clwyd Hospital, Denbighshire. |
| It said the unit, which was closed in 2013, treated some patients like animals in a zoo. | It said the unit, which was closed in 2013, treated some patients like animals in a zoo. |
| The suspension of Mr Purt was confirmed at a meeting of the Betsi Cadwaladr health board on Tuesday. | The suspension of Mr Purt was confirmed at a meeting of the Betsi Cadwaladr health board on Tuesday. |
| Dr Higson said it was a "neutral act" to allow us "the space and time to follow due process". | |
| He said he welcomed the decision to put the board into special measures, saying it was "clear" the board needed "significant support" to meet the challenges it faced. | He said he welcomed the decision to put the board into special measures, saying it was "clear" the board needed "significant support" to meet the challenges it faced. |
| Dr Higson said it was a "watershed day" adding that it was "in all our interests to get this right" if the board was to regain the trust of the people of north Wales. | Dr Higson said it was a "watershed day" adding that it was "in all our interests to get this right" if the board was to regain the trust of the people of north Wales. |
| Geoff Ryall-Harvey, chief executive of the region's community health council - the patient watchdog - welcomed Mr Purt's suspension, saying: "He's been here for a year and I don't think the 'not-on-my-watch' argument works. | Geoff Ryall-Harvey, chief executive of the region's community health council - the patient watchdog - welcomed Mr Purt's suspension, saying: "He's been here for a year and I don't think the 'not-on-my-watch' argument works. |
| "He was brought in to resolve these problems. He hasn't made the progress that he was employed to make." | "He was brought in to resolve these problems. He hasn't made the progress that he was employed to make." |
| Vale of Clwyd MP Ann Jones also welcomed Mr Purt's removal, saying: "He has clearly not learnt the lessons of the regime he took over from and I do not see how he can return to his post at any point in the future." | Vale of Clwyd MP Ann Jones also welcomed Mr Purt's removal, saying: "He has clearly not learnt the lessons of the regime he took over from and I do not see how he can return to his post at any point in the future." |
| The Betsi Cadwaladr board's deputy chair Margaret Hanson told BBC Wales that its members, most of whom were relatively new to their posts, had been "really saddened and disappointed" by what they had discovered. | The Betsi Cadwaladr board's deputy chair Margaret Hanson told BBC Wales that its members, most of whom were relatively new to their posts, had been "really saddened and disappointed" by what they had discovered. |
| "We are absolutely determined to make sure that no stone is left unturned and that we actually do put these things right, but it will take time because there are so many of them," she added. | "We are absolutely determined to make sure that no stone is left unturned and that we actually do put these things right, but it will take time because there are so many of them," she added. |
| No 'micro-managing' | No 'micro-managing' |
| On Monday, Health Minister Mark Drakeford said the decision to put the Betsi Cadwaladr health board under more direct Welsh government control reflected "serious and outstanding concerns" about its leadership. | On Monday, Health Minister Mark Drakeford said the decision to put the Betsi Cadwaladr health board under more direct Welsh government control reflected "serious and outstanding concerns" about its leadership. |
| But speaking to BBC Radio Wales on Tuesday, he said: "We will not be micro-managing. | But speaking to BBC Radio Wales on Tuesday, he said: "We will not be micro-managing. |
| "We will work through people who are on the ground in north Wales, whose commitment to health services in north Wales is huge." | "We will work through people who are on the ground in north Wales, whose commitment to health services in north Wales is huge." |
| "The idea that Cardiff Bay is best placed to make detailed decisions about what goes on on the ground in north Wales does not, to me, seem to be a plausible one," he added. | "The idea that Cardiff Bay is best placed to make detailed decisions about what goes on on the ground in north Wales does not, to me, seem to be a plausible one," he added. |
| Opposition parties have claimed the board should have been placed in special measures sooner. | Opposition parties have claimed the board should have been placed in special measures sooner. |
| Mr Drakeford was updating AMs on his plans with a statement in the Senedd on Tuesday afternoon. | |
| Dr Richard Lewis, Welsh secretary of doctors' organisation the BMA, said the minister had been left with "no option" but to put the board into special measures. | Dr Richard Lewis, Welsh secretary of doctors' organisation the BMA, said the minister had been left with "no option" but to put the board into special measures. |
| He added: "It is important that whatever actions are now taken lead to increased public, patient and health staff trust and involvement in the organisation and its decisions on service implementation leading to secure quality and safety of services." | He added: "It is important that whatever actions are now taken lead to increased public, patient and health staff trust and involvement in the organisation and its decisions on service implementation leading to secure quality and safety of services." |
| Analysis by Nick Servini, BBC Wales political editor | Analysis by Nick Servini, BBC Wales political editor |
| Health Minister Mark Drakeford says there won't be any micro-management of Betsi Cadwaladr by the Welsh government. | Health Minister Mark Drakeford says there won't be any micro-management of Betsi Cadwaladr by the Welsh government. |
| There's an argument to say that special measures are by definition micro-management, and that was quickly borne out by the announcement that the chief executive has been suspended. | There's an argument to say that special measures are by definition micro-management, and that was quickly borne out by the announcement that the chief executive has been suspended. |
| We'll find out later exactly what level of oversight there'll be. | We'll find out later exactly what level of oversight there'll be. |
| The decision on the chief executive, and indeed the decision on special measures in the first place, should take the sting out of criticism from opposition parties. | The decision on the chief executive, and indeed the decision on special measures in the first place, should take the sting out of criticism from opposition parties. |
| But there's been no let-up from the critics. Plaid Cymru says special measures are a "huge acceptance of failure" while the leader of the Welsh Conservatives Andrew RT Davies says the board members who were there at the time of the Tawel Fan scandal should "look long and hard at their position". | But there's been no let-up from the critics. Plaid Cymru says special measures are a "huge acceptance of failure" while the leader of the Welsh Conservatives Andrew RT Davies says the board members who were there at the time of the Tawel Fan scandal should "look long and hard at their position". |