The PFI hospital was opened by Tony Blair in July 2002

Ten people were taken ill at the �96m University Hospital in Durham, which opened in 2002 under the private finance initiative (PFI).

The outbreak was at the hospital's privately-run Bede's Restaurant.

All those affected were either staff or visitors, no patients were affected. Two were taken in for treatment.

The outbreak, which happened in November 2003, has only just been made public.

An investigation into the incident is still going on and health bosses have promised to release the findings at a public meeting in May.

The outbreak has been pinpointed to a single lunchtime on 16 November.

Frozen food

The 10 people affected have all since recovered.

A so-called outbreak control team, took charge of the investigation. It is made up of local authority environmental health officers along with specialists from the hospital and primary care trusts and the health protection agency.

The restaurant is operated by London-based Consort Healthcare, which is part of the Balfour Beatty group.

Promotional material issued by the hospital, says meals are delivered to the hospital frozen and then prepared for the patients near their wards.

But it stresses food in the top-floor restaurant is freshly prepared.

A spokesman for the Durham and Darlington Acute Hospitals Trust said a report on the incident was being finalised and would be presented to a public meeting of the trust "at the earliest possible opportunity."

A spokesman for Consort Healthcare confirmed the outbreak and added that since November an environmental health inspector had made a subsequent routine visit, taken food samples and given the restaurant a clean bill of health.