of positives came out of meeting he held with hospital chiefs in Bradford yesterday.

The Bradford West MP had demanded a meeting with bosses at Bradford Royal Infirmary to discuss a watchdog’s report into standards at the Duckworth Lane hospital.

It followed the publication of a report by the Care Quality Commission into what inspectors found during unannounced visits to BRI in September and October last year.

The Trust failed to meet national standards in four of six areas looked at by inspectors.

It must now comply with an official warning to improve staffing by early March.

The chairman of Bradford Council’s Health and Social Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee, Mike Gibbons, said the report was “concerning”, particularly around staffing levels.

But Mr Galloway, who met Bryan Millar, chief executive of the Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, and chief nurse Juliette Greenwood, came away feeling positive.

“It was a pretty productive meeting all round,” said Mr Galloway, who talked about BRI’s plan to recruit three extra consultants for the accident and emergency department, as well as more mid-range doctors.

He continued: “They did seem to have been galvanised by the visit and the report.

“It was very constructive. They do seem to be addressing the legitimate flaws that were found – which are by and large A&E problems.

“They are staffing up in A&E so that the service will be much quicker and more effective.”

Mr Galloway said that most of the report’s criticisms were “basically” about A&E, and added: “There is a national shortage of nurses and consultants for A&E because it does not seem to be the “sexiest” part of medicine.

“They are going out of their way to recruit those extra staff. So they should be cutting down on congestion in A&E in future. They are certainly spending money on it.”

He added: “Certainly there will be a greater staffing in A&E within weeks rather than months, so the standards will be a lot higher for everyone.”

A spokesman for BRI said: “We welcome the opportunity to have open and transparent dialogue with Mr Galloway and discuss the significant steps we have taken to improve standards.”

Mr Galloway added: “The test will come in March.”

He later tweeted: “Bradford Royal Infirmary deserve respect as it deals with recent serious official criticisms of aspects of its care. 5,000 jobs depend on BRI.”