Cash for organs

A private firm whose wealthy clients were given donor organs bought from children is in talks to run parts of the NHS.

Department of Health officials have been meeting with bosses of the General Healthcare Group, hoping the firm will run services—including transplant operations.

The group’s subsidiary firm, Netcare, was last year fined nearly £700,000 after pleading guilty to illegally transplanting human organs in South Africa.

Netcare had recruited children to “donate” kidneys to patients rich enough to pay. More than 100 illegal operations were carried out between 2001 and 2003.