A CHEF claims that he went into hospital for a routine operation - and came out blind and paralysed.

Just ten weeks ago, things could not have been going better for 37-year-old chef Graham Lockhart, who recently married his Lithuanian girlfriend Vita, 25, who had given birth to their daughter, Rachel.

He went into hospital for an operation to re-inflate a collapsed lung, at Newcastle's Freeman Hospital. However, the procedure went wrong and his brain was starved of oxygen for 20 minutes.

He woke up blind, with slurred speech and twisted hands.

An anaesthetist has been suspended while an investigation is carried out by health chiefs.

The hospital has made a £2,000 interim payment, without admitting responsibility.

Yesterday, Mr Lockhart, of Gateshead, who also has a daughter, Natasha, 11, said: "My whole life has been shattered and I want some answers as to what went wrong."

His solicitor, David Bradshaw, of Hay and Kilner, Newcastle, has asked for £5,000, so that Mr Lockhart can receive immediate treatment at Holly Lodge head injuries unit, Sheffield.

He said: "This is one of the most appalling and tragic cases I have ever dealt with."

A spokesman for Newcastle NHS Hospitals Trust said: "This is a complex matter and we are investigating the circumstances to ascertain whether or not anything untoward has arisen.

"In the meantime, the NHS is endeavouring to meet the needs of Mr Lockhart, but it would appear difficulties have arisen in meeting the particular demands of the family.