Atos Healthcare was fired on Wednesday by the Department of Health for failure to deliver on two multi-million pound contracts to provide diagnostic services for NHS patients in the north-west and south-west of England.

At the same time Alan Johnson, health secretary, announced that the third of about 15 schemes for independent surgical treatment centres will go ahead, with the Swedish-owned Capio winning a deal to treat 11,000 patients a year in Cumbria and Lancashire.