A WIDOW whose husband died after waiting eight months for heart surgery is to take her quest for answers to Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Ann Golightly's husband Bob, a deputy headteacher from Bishop Auckland, died of a heart attack in the arms of his daughter Kirsty while on his way to watch Darlington at Wembley earlier this month.

Mrs Golightly, who criticised health chiefs over the wait for surgery faced by her husband and is considering legal action, has now written to the PM urging him to take action to prevent a similar tragedy.

She asks why Mr Golightly, 53, had to wait so long for a triple heart bypass when guidelines say that no one should wait more than three months for such surgery.

The Government has since pledged £50m on heart surgery in order to start tackling the problem.

In the letter by Mrs Golightly, a copy of which has been passed to The Northern Echo, she says: "To you he may be another statistic but to me he was a warm, caring husband who was loved and respected by all. I will not cease until I have answers and justice. If I can prevent another family going through what we have had to endure then my time has been well spent."

Mr Golightly, 53, who worked at Staindrop Comprehensive School, was told by staff at South Cleveland Hospital not to pay for a private operation because his condition was not life-threatening.

Bosses at South Tees Acute Hospitals NHS Trust later defended his treatment, saying that they did not believe he was at greater risk of sudden death than anyone else on the surgery waiting list.

Mrs Golightly has now asked the trust to investigate her concerns under its grievances procedure.

Simon Kendall, its heart unit clinical director and Mr Golightly's surgeon, caused controversy when he said: "I do not see why complainers should get to the front of the queue".

He was speaking about 38-year-old Darlington father-of-two Ian Weir, whose death seven months after waiting for heart surgery prompted the Echo's award-winning A Chance To Live Campaign.

A spokeswoman for the trust said: "Mrs Golightly will receive an official response from the trust in due course as soon as our inquiries are completed."

l Follow our Chance to live campaign online at: www.northern-echo.co.uk/campaigns/ achancetolive