Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what guidance his Department issues to NHS England on sharing accountability for prescribed specialised services with clinical commissioning groups.

The Department does not issue guidance to NHS England on sharing accountability for prescribed specialised services with clinical commissioning groups.

It is for Ministers to take the final decision as to which services should be prescribed within Schedule 4 of The National Health Service Commissioning Board and Clinical Commissioning Groups (Responsibilities and Standing Rules) Regulations 2012, and therefore which services are directly commissioned by NHS England. It is for NHS England to determine the approach through which to carry out its responsibility for the commissioning of specialised services.