Brighton Health Care NHS Trust was one of the few in England to receive no stars in the Government's new assessment scheme.

Anyone who reads today's story in The Argus about the death of former Hove Mayor Ian Moy-Loader will not be surprised.

This trust runs the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Eastern Road which was the main reason why it fared so badly.

There has been a constant series of complaints, many of them justified, about this hospital, including appallingly long waits by sick and injured people for accident and emergency treatment.

The case of Mr Moy-Loader shows the hospital is also falling down on providing decent care to people who are dying.

There was no doubt that Mr Moy-Loader was an old and sick man when he was admitted to the hospital last month.

His daughter, Geraldine Des Moulins, accepted that. But what she and the rest of her family cannot accept is the way in which he died.

She found him in distress with cracked lips in a bloodstained sheet lying on a mattress on the floor.

Mrs Des Moulins feels her father was given low priority because he was old and did not appear to be an emergency.

It took her time to approach The Argus with details of this distressing case because she was upset.

But she feels no one else should have to put up with what her elderly father endured during his last hours.

Mr Moy-Loader served his town as a councillor and served his country.

He was a controversial figure who had strong opinions and was not afraid to voice them vehemently. Had he survived his spell in hospital, he would have launched a crusade to improve conditions there.

Ian Moy-Loader was a fighter who would take up the case of anyone he considered had suffered an injustice.

He would be proud of his daughter who has taken up the appalling conditions he suffered when he was near death.

No one should be allowed to die in this way and it is disgraceful this proud old man was not given proper care.

There may be explanations for some of the decisions. It is likely that he was on the floor because he had fallen out of bed previously.

Dying is seldom the easy, painless, swift business most of us would wish it to be.

People become confused and they are in distress. They need help and comfort. Their relatives should be asked to be there.

The trust has promised an inquiry now that Mrs Des Moulins has made an official complaint.

It may plead shortage of money and shortage of staff. But these problems affect hospitals all over the country.

This latest case adds credence to the calls for a new team at the top.