THE NORTH-EAST is being starved of NHS funding despite the region's appalling health record, a report reveals today.

Health services in County Durham and Tees Valley are missing out on £28.8m of government cash a year - twice as much as previously thought.

Six of the area's ten primary care trusts (PCTs) are underfunded compared to their "target allocation", according to an independent study.

The Northern Echo revealed last month that Easington was the most underfunded PCT in England, facing a £13.9m shortfall in 2006/2007.

The Healthcare Commission has now revealed that North Tees (£11.5m), Middlesbrough (£7m), Hartlepool (£3.9m), Derwentside (£2.8m) and Sedgefield (£1m) also lose out.

Only Darlington (£8.4m) gains from the funding formula, although Durham and Chester-le-Street (£1.1m), Durham Dales (£1m) and Langbaurgh (£0.8m) also gain.

Overall, County Durham and Tees Valley loses £28.8m a year - while health services in parts of London receive up to £50m more than they should.

The figures come only days after a report revealed that the "health gap" between the richest and poorest areas of England was widening.

It found the Government was failing to reduce the gap - measured by infant mortality and life expectancy - by ten per cent between 1997 and 2010.

PCTs are vital to that aim, because they are responsible for co-ordinating the services provided by family doctors, community nurses, dentists and pharmacists.

In February, the Health Secretary at the time, John Reid, announced a three-year funding package that directed extra funding to the 88 most deprived PCT areas.

The largest percentage increases in allocations in the region were in the County Durham and Tees Valley area - including a 30 per cent rise in Easington.

But the Healthcare Commission concluded the package would still leave the six County Durham and Tees Valley PCTs underfunded.

A Department of Health spokeswoman accepted that many PCTs were not receiving the amount they should "on the basis of the relative needs of their populations".

But she said: "We are moving PCTs more quickly towards their fair share of funds. No PCT will be more than 3.5 per cent below its fair share by the end of 2007/2008."

Last week's report found the gap in life expectancy between the bottom fifth and the population as a whole had widened by two per cent for males and five per cent for females between 1997to 1979 and 2001 to 2003.

Dr John Canning, a Middlesbrough GP who sits on the British Medical Association's national family doctor committee, said he was not surprised to learn of the shortfall in the North-East.

"This is the old, old story. We never seem to get the amount of money that match the needs of the area," he said.

Dr Canning, who is also secretary of Cleveland Local Medical Committee, said: "One of the things we have to look at is the funding in Scotland, which is relatively generous with not a huge difference in health needs compared to parts of the North-East of England."

Commenting on the Department of Health's reassurance that no PCT would be more than 3.5 per cent below its fair share of allocation by the end of 2007/2008, Dr Canning said: "It seems to me that 3.5 per cent is still a huge amount of money when it comes to the care of the population."

He also questioned whether the Government's emphasis on providing more choice in the NHS was the best use of funds.

Alison Hyde, spokeswoman for the County Durham and Tees Valley Strategic Health Authority, said: "Nine out of ten PCTs in County Durham and Tees Valley have become spearhead trusts as part of the recent Government initiative which means they received significant investment.

"However, we are well aware that the area is historically underfunded, particularly Easington. That is why Easington received the biggest amount of growth money."