Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the costs and benefits of the NHS internal market; and if he will make a statement.

As with many healthcare systems worldwide, the National Health Service has employed a purchaser-provider split for a number of years, and under successive governments in order to ensure that resources are used to the maximum benefit of patients.

A number of evaluations of aspects of this approach have been conducted, including work undertaken by organisations such as the Nuffield Trust and the King’s Fund. The Government remains committed to supporting both commissioners and providers to secure value by controlling costs and improving quality of care.