Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of the organisational integration of NHS England and NHS Improvement.

Since 2018, NHS England and NHS Improvement have been working collaboratively to enable them to work more effectively with commissioners and providers in local health systems; to speak with one voice to set clear and consistent expectations; to use collective resources more efficiently; and to remove unnecessary duplication. In 2019, the Health and Social Care Committee supported legislative proposals to merge NHS England and NHS Improvement into a single body which would be responsible for the management of the sector, making best use of its collective resources for the greatest benefit for patients. The Government is committed to supporting and enabling the National Health Service to work effectively together, and where this requires legislative change, we will bring forward proposals in due course. We are continuing to work closely with the system, building on NHS England’s publication of the NHS Long Term Plan, to ensure that the NHS is best placed to deliver the best possible care to patients.