The Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced that NHS England, the administrative arm of the NHS, is to be abolished.

NHS England was created in 2012 during the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government and intended to give the NHS independence from central government. Its role was to oversee administrative decisions, including funding and budgeting. This was widely criticised as a step toward privatisation, even being referred to as creating a ‘fragmented web of bureaucracy’ by Lord Darzi during his independent investigation of the NHS.

Under the new proposed plans, NHS England will be brought back under control of the Department of Health and Social Care. The intention behind this is to prevent taxpayers paying for two organisations that perform the same role, diverting the money saved into the frontlines of the NHS.

Speaking in Hull on 13th March, the Prime Minister stated, ‘I can’t, in all honesty, explain to the British people why they should spend their money on two layers of bureaucracy that money could and should be spent on nurses, doctors, operations and GP appointments.’ His full speech can be read here- https://news.sky.com/story/nhs-england-to-be-scrapped-with-management-of-health-service-returning-to-government-starmer-says-13327685

This decision has overall been welcomed, and it is hopeful that this will reduce overall waiting times and appointment availability. However, it has left many of those in clinical negligence wondering how this will affect future claims.

These reforms may mean that the process of clinical negligence practitioners corresponding with NHS Trusts could become more streamlined and uniform, as all Trusts will be directly accountable to the Department of Health and Social Care.

However, there is a concern that overall performance of the NHS may be affected during the transition period between NHS England and Department of Health and Social Care. This may have an impact on patient care, potentially resulting in an increase in clinical negligence claims.

The NHS is a much loved and respected British institution, and as said best by its creator, Aneurin Bevan, ‘The NHS will last as long as there are folk with faith left to fight for it’. Although it is too early to conclude the impact that this will have on clinical negligence, we are hopeful that these reforms are a step toward providing the much-needed funding the NHS has long needed.