RICHARD Garner is 45. He has had to quit his job and cancel a holiday, and the pains in his left hip dominate his life.

"I am in absolute agony and I can't leave the house," Mr Garner says. "My life is on hold because I can't do anything."

Now Mr Garner, from Corporation Road, Newport, is fuming - after being told by doctors they cannot perform a hip replacement operation on him until 2006.

"The consultant at the Royal Gwent has put me on a waiting-list for a hip replacement, but I will have to wait until March 2006," he says.

This is within current Assembly waiting-list targets.

But it is a wait that Assembly Deputy Health Minister John Griffiths admits is too long.

Newport East Assembly Member Mr Griffiths says: "Eighteen months is far too long to wait for an operation, and I fully appreciate that.

"It would be considerably less of a wait in England, and that is not good enough."

Mr Garner was diagnosed with Perthe's disease - where there is a loss of bloodflow to the 'ball' of the hip joint, weakening it - at the age of ten.

He was wheelchair-bound for three years, with his legs encased in splints to prevent his hips being damaged as he grew.

But by the age of 15, after two years of therapy, he was able to walk again.

Since then Mr Garner has led an active life, even running races and marathons for charity.

But in June this year he developed pains in his left hip.

After consulting his GP, he was told the childhood condition had caused arthritis.

Mr Garner was referred to a specialist and is now on an 18-month waiting-list for a hip replacement operation.

Mr Garner says he is in agony every day.

"I can't believe it came back like that, it was such a shock," he says.

"I can't put any pressure on my leg because of the absolute pain.

"It feels like someone is putting a knife in me. I can't sleep and I can't walk far without help."

Mr Garner has given up his job unblocking drains, and has had to cancel a two-week Christmas coach holiday to Spain.

He says: "I can't work, I can't go on holiday. I used to lead an active life. It's really getting me down. I don't understand why I have to wait so long."

A spokesman for the Gwent NHS Trust said Mr Garner will be seen within the waiting-time limits.

"This will be 18 months from the date of his referral in September 2004, which is within the date set by the Assembly," said the spokesman.

"All patients are placed on waiting-lists according to their clinical priority. This decision is made by our consultants and the patients' GP."

South Wales East Conservative AM William Graham says: "This case is absolutely outrageous and I feel very strongly about it.

"We have never spent so much taxpayers' money and had such a poor service in return.

"We are supposed to be part of the UK, and we are rapidly descending into a Third World health service."

Mr Griffiths says the Assembly knows it has to tackle waiting-lists.

He said: "We realise the need to drive down waiting times much further and we are doing all we can."

He says an Assembly scheme being introduced next year would give patients on an 18-month waiting-list a second offer of a 12-month wait for an operation under another Welsh health authority.