NEW figures show a North-South divide in hospital waiting times for NHS surgery, with shorter waiting times in the North.

Mike Stone, chief executive of the Patients Association, said he believed new research showing longer waiting times in the South than the North suggested the NHS was not providing a uniform service throughout the country.

"We may live in a country with a National Health Service which by its name implies that whether you live in Trent or whether you live in the South-East you will be getting the same standard of treatment within the same amount of time," he said.

"But clearly this is not happening. There are huge variations around the country."

His remarks came as The Times published research from the think-tank the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) showing the gap between the best and worst UK regions for most types of operations was six and a half weeks.

Statistics from the first half of the year showed the average waiting time from seeing a GP to having an operation was 180 days in the Trent region, 182 days in the Northern and Yorkshire regions and 193 days in the North-West. But patients must wait for 217 days in the South-East, 207 days in London and 206 days in the Eastern region.

There was a rise of 1.6 days in delays on average in the South East compared with the same time last year. In the same, period delays fell by 8.7 days in Trent and the North-West.

The biggest divide was for ear, nose and throat surgery, with patients in London waiting eight and a half weeks longer than those in the Trent region.

The study was sponsored by Health Care Navigator, a company that links individuals seeking private hospital treatment with healthcare companies.

The Department of Health admitted that the research showing hospital waiting times were much longer in the South-East was correct.

But it claimed the research was "riddled with inaccuracies"