As the Department of Health's national director for primary care, Dr David Colin-Thomé is inevitably a controversial figure in general practice and has often been the target for GPs angry at the reforms he has helped lead.
Yet he is not a simple Government yes man. He admitted last week that a damning report from the Primary Care Foundation, which drove a coach and horses through Lord Darzi's plans for a huge shift of A&E cases to primary care, was a ‘realistic assessment'.
And his recent description of practice-based commissioning, as a ‘corpse not for resuscitation', was hardly model diplomacy, even if he did swiftly retract the comments.
Dr Colin-Thomé retired from his GP practice in Runcorn in March 2007 but continues in his DH role. He is tightly bound to health secretary Andy Burnham, if only by their shared passion for Everton FC.
Dr David Colin-Thome Top 50 most influential GPs
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