Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the effect of the capped expenditure process on patient care.

Providers have managed to reduce the deficit from £2.4 billion (in 2015-16) to £791 million this year.

This success isn’t universal. Some areas consistently exceed budgets, requiring increased savings by others.

14 areas have joined a ‘Capped Expenditure Process’ with commissioners and providers working together to achieve budgets assured by their Boards. Their proposals involve patients and staff; placing patient safety and constitutional rights at the heart of decision making.