Clegg refuses to endorse NHS Bill as peers target more concessions

The Deputy Prime Minister's stance follows the disclosure that not one Liberal Democrat turned up to the Downing Street summit hosted by David Cameron yesterday to sell the NHS legislation to health professionals and patients.

Senior party sources confirmed to the Evening Standard that the boycott was deliberate because although the party backed the reforms in principle, they felt it was up to the Conservatives to do the "hard sell" of convincing a sceptical public.

When asked on ITV Daybreak today if he backed the Bill 100 per cent, Mr Clegg paused before replying: "I am behind reforming the NHS to improve care for patients."

He said he supported the principle of the reforms which was "to give people who know patients the best - doctors, nurses, clinicians - more say about what happens to those patients and about how the NHS is run".

Mr Clegg is understood to be backing Lib-Dem peers who want a vote next week on new amendments to the Bill, this time limiting the role of competition.

A senior party source said: "The Bill is still going through the Lords and there is a whole series of amendments being put down by Liberal Democrats to ensure competition is based on quality not price."

Downing Street was today ruing yesterday's summit, which started with No 10 refusing to say who was attending and also saw Health Secretary Andrew Lansley being ambushed by trade union pickets.

An ICM poll in the Guardian suggests that 52 per cent of voters want the Government to drop the NHS reforms and 33 per cent want it to press on.

Mr Clegg today launched plans for firms and charities to get bounties of up to £2,200 for each jobless teenager they train up.

The £126 million scheme is aimed at 55,000 teenagers in England who are not in education, employment or training.

"Sitting at home with nothing to do when you're so young can knock the stuffing out of you for years," he said.