The government has again defied an order to make public its own assessment of the risks from its changes to the NHS.

Labour MP John Healey believes it is a "desperate act" from a government "on the defensive" which will lead people to ask whether anything is being is kept hidden from the public.

Keeping the register secret will fuel "doubts and distrust", he said.

But Health minister Lord Howe insisted that the government have been "very open all the way" about what the risks present.

Publication of the register would undermine civil servants' ability to have "frank and free" discussions, he explains. However, the government have "every interest" in publishing the risk register in due course.

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