A SPA woman was disgusted to discover a private letter she had written to the Prime Minister complaining about her NHS treatment was found dumped in a skip in Oxford.

Ex-school nurse and mum-of-two Ann Hodgson, of Florence Avenue, had a gynaecological operation cancelled in February - just one hour before she was due to go into theatre.

Mrs Hodgson, aged 67, was told that because she had only had the operation cancelled once she was not a priority.

She was so angry she wrote to Tony Blair, health secretary John Reid and the Worcestershire Royal Hospital, where the operation was supposed to take place.

The letter, addressed to Tony Blair, contained private information but was found dumped in a recycling skip, along with a petition and a bundle of other confidential letters to the Government.

A national newspaper was tipped off about the find and phoned Mrs Hodgson to tell her that her letter was amongst them.

Ann said: "I think it's completely disgraceful that they would treat my letter with such disregard.

"I couldn't believe it when I found out. This shouldn't be able to happen. Why don't they shred letters when they are finished with them?"

Ann finally had her operation at a hospital in Cheltenham a few days later.

A Department of Health spokeswoman said: "All correspondence to health ministers is scanned on to a confidential database so that it can be circulated securely to appropriate members of Department of Health staff for action.

"Checks show that these letters and the petition have been logged and actioned.

"The petition and other correspondence were then put in the Department's internal post system and should not have left Richmond House.

"We have instigated immediate changes to the way hard copies of correspondence are dealt with in order to avoid this happening again, and will be carrying out a full internal investigation."

No one has got in touch with Ann from the Government. She added: "I just feel as if someone from the Government should contact me and say how sorry they are."

Now the town's Conservative parliamentary candidate, Peter Luff, is on the case.

He said: "I am writing to the Prime Minister about Ann Hodgson, having spoken to her.

"She may have had her operation, but she was let down by the Health Service and now she has been let down by the Prime Minister too.

"In my letter I say that there has been a shameful breach of her privacy and that she is owed a full apology for the way her affairs have been handled."

The Advertiser requested an apology from the Labour party on behalf of Mrs Hodgson but no response was forthcoming by the time we went to press.