Claims by the doctor at the centre of the Alder Hey organs scandal that he never knowingly removed body parts without consent were dismissed by the hospital yesterday.
Professor Dick van Velzen, now the subject of a police investigation, has blamed NHS management for the failings that led to last week's damning public inquiry report.
But Alder Hey Hospital said in a statement: "The claims made are not substantiated in the inquiry report." The hospital rejected the doctor's claims that he had never taken children's organs without the permission of their parents.
"People forget to tell the parents what the post-mortem actually is," said Professor van Velzen (51). "It's terrible. It's not my fault." He said he inherited a run-down, dilapidated system when he started work at the Alder Hey children's hospital in Liverpool.
Prof van Velzen's denial comes as health officials prepare for an emergency summit to combat a feared collapse in the number of transplants following the Alder Hey scandal. Health Secretary Alan Milburn will hold the meeting with surgeons, health chiefs, business representatives, unions and parents "as soon as possible" in a bid to rebuild public confidence as donations are feared to have dropped by more than half.