Seven drug addiction specialists were accused by the General Medical Council this week of excessive prescribing of heroin and other drugs, and inadequate surveillance of patients, in what will be the biggest disciplinary case in the history of the GMC.

The seven doctors worked at the Stapleford Centre, one of Britain's biggest private addiction clinics, with branches in Belgravia, London, and Stapleford Tawney, Essex. More than half of the GMC's charges relate to the founder of the Stapleford Centre, Dr Colin Brewer. The other six doctors, three of whom still …