The government was due yesterday to unveil its plans for an NHS modernisation board to oversee implementation of the national plan.

The board, first mooted after NHS chief executive Sir Alan Langlands' resignation in February, will have about 30 members, with a third of the seats going to patient representatives.

A third will go to doctors, nurses and other frontline staff, with 'high-performing' chief executives given the final third. The board will be linked to taskforces overseeing priority areas for reform, but day-to-day management will remain with the NHS Executive.

Scottish health minister Susan Deacon has announced the membership of a 15-strong NHS modernisation board for Scotland.

It will have a key role in co-ordinating the work of a range of national project groups examining policy development, service delivery and governance.

A surprise omission from the board is current chief executive of the NHS in Scotland Geoff Scaife. This has added further fuel to speculation that he is about to leave the service.

Among those who will be on the board are chief medical officer Sir David Carter, NHS Scotland director of human resources Gerry Marr and a number of NHS managers and union representatives.