Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answers of 26 January 2015 to Question 221450 and of 2 March 2015 to Questions 225136, 225137 and 225138, for what reasons funding is provided to University Hospital Bristol to treat patients with gamma knife radiosurgery; when that funding approval was given; and who authorised that funding.

Since 1 April 2013, radiosurgery treatment is planned and paid for by NHS England to a national specification, developed through public consultation. All existing contracts for stereotactic radiosurgery and stereotactic radiotherapy services, including that with University Hospital Bristol, were transferred to NHS England on 1 April 2013. NHS England has continued to commission against these contracts, during the review of stereotactic radiosurgery and radiotherapy.

The future provision of stereotactic radiosurgery services in NHS England will be determined by the procurement exercise that will follow on from the consultation exercise that has recently ended. Until this process is completed there are no plans to change current commissioning arrangements.