Relationship between David Bennett, former head of Monitor, and Sir Hugh Taylor, chair at Guy's & St Thomas'

Response to this request is long overdue. By law, under all circumstances, NHS Improvement should have responded by now (details). You can complain by requesting an internal review.

Dear NHS Improvement,

The questions below should each be considered as a separate request, to avoid you responding that collectively they will require too much time. These requests relate to the healthcare sector regulator Monitor, which became part of NHS Improvement during 2016.

The purpose of the requests is the explore claims of inappropriate relationships between David Bennett, head of Monitor until early 2016, and Sir Hugh Taylor, chair of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS FT since 2011. Broadly, the claims are that David Bennett appointed Sir Hugh Taylor as interim chair of The Christie NHS FT during 2014, and that Sir Hugh Taylor influenced the appointment of David Bennett as chair of Viapath (a pathology business partly owned by Guy's and St Thomas') in 2016.

1. Please provide copies of all correspondence between Guys and St Thomas' and Monitor during the period 1st January 2013 and 31st March 2016.

2. Please provide copies of all correspondence between David Bennett in his capacity as head of Monitor, and Sir Hugh Taylor, during the period 1st January 2013 and 31st March 2016.

3. Please provide details of all meetings between David Bennett in his capacity as head of Monitor, and Sir Hugh Taylor, during the period 1st January 2013 and 31st March 2016. with minutes of these meetings.

4. Please confirm that Monitor appointed Sir Hugh Taylor as interim chair of The Christie in March 2014. Please provide details of the process behind this appointment, including
a) Any adverts for candidates, including details of where placed, and or any headhunters used
b) Dates of interviews for long-listed and short-listed candidates.
c) Members of the selection panel or others involved in the selection process
d) The employment contract for the interim chair
e) The level of remuneration for the interim chair

Yours faithfully,

Sean Lamb