Latest Government figures on hospital waiting lists show Bradford Health Authority is bucking the national trend.

The statistics released today by the Department of Health show NHS waiting lists have fallen for six months in a row.

But hospital waiting lists in the Bradford district rose by 77 last month to 12,152 - still 300 above last year's levels and just over 10 per cent above its end of year target of 10,895.

And although the number of people waiting more than a year for treatment is considerably lower than last year, that figure also rose during October by 40 to 504.

Nationally the number of patients waiting to be admitted to hospitals in England fell by 20,106 in October and the number of patients waiting for more than 12 months dropped by 2,400 - the fifth monthly fall in a row.

The poor showing in Bradford has been blamed on illness to key consultants working at Bradford Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs Bradford Royal Infirmary and St Luke's Hospital.

Lesley Hill, patient manager at Bradford Health Authority, said today: "Bradford was given one of the toughest targets in the country. Waiting lists have fallen month after month, October was just a hiccup. The Hospitals NHS Trusts are working extremely hard and we are still very much on target to reach the end of year figure set by the Government."

Bradford Health Authority was given an extra £2.8 million by the Department for Health this year to fund a range of staffing and treatment initiatives to wage the war on waiting lists.

Commenting on the national figures Health Secretary Frank Dobson said: "For six months in a row NHS staff have delivered fall after fall in waiting lists. This achievement hasn't happened by accident, it's down to their sheer hard work."

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