Hospitals run by the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust have a new chairman.

Anthony Jones, 64, who lives in Hartlip, is taking on the role. George Jenkins has been working as chairman on an interim basis for more than a year, after the previous one, James Lee, stepped down when the C-diff scandal broke in October 2007.

Mr Jones joined the board of the hospitals trust in March this year as a non-executive director.

In September it was revealed that the Appointments Commission, which handles appointments to NHS boards, were offering double the salary for MTW’s new chairman after it had problems finding a suitable candidate.

Mr Jones, who will take up his post on January 1, 2009, will be paid £44,000 per annum, over a four-year term. The normal remuneration for a hospital trust chairman is £23,000.