The man in charge of overseeing England's emergency care has said that A&E departments need three times the present number of doctors in order to offer the best possible treatment.

Despite lavishing praise on progress made so far, Sir George Alberti suggested it might be another eight years before staffing was up to the levels needed for the best care.

Alberti presented his report to the prime minister and the health secretary John Reid at a Number 10 breakfast on Tuesday morning.

He made it clear more had to be done to ensure quality as well as speed of treatment but he also said England's NHS was becoming the "envy of the world" with target setting producing "dramatic improvements" from only two years ago.

"If I was being gloomy about it, I would say unless we get people from overseas and get people moved sideways, it would probably be eight years before we get the desired numbers, but it will go up year by year," Alberti said.

However, he added that emergency service reform had brought big improvements.

"New investment has led to more doctors and nurses than ever before, ensuring people have swifter access to medical advice, swifter access to hospital beds and swifter access to specialist services such as mental health," he added

Report welcomed

Health secretary John Reid welcomed the report's view that improvements had been made.

"New investment has led to more doctors and nurses than ever before, ensuring people have swifter access to medical advice, swifter access to hospital beds, and swifter access to specialist services such as mental health," he said.

"This report shows that 19 out of 20 people are seen, diagnosed and treated within four hours in A&E. They can now get the right treatment wherever and whenever they need - be it at a walk-in-centre, minor injury unit or A&E department.

"We are not complacent about these sustained improvements in emergency care and recognise that more work is needed to provide even better and quicker services for patients."