Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the NHS Long Term Plan, whether an impact assessment will be (a) conducted and (b) published as part of the clinical standards review.

The clinically-led review of standards was announced by the Prime Minister in June 2018. The review is considering the appropriateness of operational standards for physical and mental health relating to planned, unplanned urgent or emergency care, as well as cancer.

The Long Term Plan provides a platform upon which innovative models of patient care can and are being developed. In that context, the National Health Service’s National Medical Director has been working with the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, Healthwatch England and many others to consider what matters most to patients, on the clinical issues with the current target regime, and what NHS staff believe will help them provide the best quality care for patients.

The review will report its interim findings in the spring of 2019, after which any recommended changes will be carefully field tested across the NHS, before they are implemented. An impact assessment will be published, and changes to the NHS Constitution will be consulted on as is legally required.