A UNION leader representing NHS workers has challenged former hospital boss Phil Morley's insistence that he had a "zero tolerance" approach to bullying.
Unison has written to Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt asking to be part of an inquiry into Mr Morley's conduct during his time as chief executive of Hull and East Yorkshire NHS Trust.
The Health Secretary has agreed to look into allegations made against Mr Morley after meeting Hull's three MPs, Alan Johnson, Diana Johnson and Karl Turner.
Unison regional officer Ray Gray said: "Not only do we welcome the inquiry, we would also welcome the opportunity to present evidence to the inquiry to justify the claims of a bullying culture that operated within the trust from the top down.
"I was, however, surprised to see the comment from Mr Morley that there was zero tolerance for bullying within the trust during his tenure."
Mr Morley quit the trust in April weeks after audit chairman Ursula Vickerton called in external auditors about concerns over credit card bills and remuneration paid to senior staff.
An inspection for the Care Quality Commission (CQC) was published weeks later, exposing a culture of bullying at the trust, which runs Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital in Cottingham.
Conciliation service ACAS was called in and said staff felt intimidated into abandoning complaints over their treatment, believing the message came "from the very top".
It also said NHS workers felt senior staff were "supportive of bullies and the bullying culture".
However, Mr Morley, who is now chief executive at Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow, Essex, issued a statement after the MPs met Mr Hunt, stating he was proud of his "successes" during his time in Hull.
Mr Morley said: "No evidence has been found to support any claim of wrongdoing or fraudulent activity on my part and I strongly refute any such allegation.
"I have always exercised a zero-tolerance approach to bullying and was instrumental in taking the decision, proactively, to commission the ACAS report into bullying after concerns were raised by the CQC.
"I am proud of the clinical and other successes I achieved during my time as chief executive at Hull and East Yorkshire NHS Trust and have made clear my willingness to meet the Hull MPs to discuss the issues they have raised."
However, Mr Gray said the trust was run on "fear" while Mr Morley was in charge.
He said: "You can't run a trust through fear but, sadly, for almost three years, this is what took place in Hull.
"The CQC identified it, as did ACAS, so to claim zero tolerance is beyond belief.
"We will be writing to the Secretary of State to be part of the inquiry, which I hope will be independent and transparent."
