Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assistance his Department has offered to Harrow Clinical Commissioning Group to help it avoid its projected deficit of £116.4 million by 2018-19; and if he will make a statement.

We are advised by NHS England that the projected deficit figure for 2018/19 dates from November 2013, and was included in a potential “downside case” modelled as part of Harrow Clinical Commissioning Group’s (CCG) sustainability plan which was submitted to NHS England.

We understand that the sustainability plan also included an “upside case” and a “mid case” and that all three cases were modelled according to varying projected levels of Quality, Innovation, Productivity and Prevention (QIPP) savings.

The joint financial strategy agreed with the seven other CCGs in north-west London, combined with higher than average growth in allocations and delivery of its QIPP programme, has enabled Harrow CCG to improve its financial performance, as a result of which it is now reporting a surplus of £2 million for 2015/16.

For 2014/15, Harrow CCG received one of the highest funding increases in the country, amounting to 4.2% on the previous year. For 2015/16, the CCG received another above average increase in allocation and will receive a funding increase of 6% in 2016/17, compared to an average CCG growth figure in London of 3.6%.