Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they have taken to remove the use of confidentiality agreements in relation to the dismissal of senior NHS executives.

Settlement agreements, including confidentiality clauses, are not required where an employee is dismissed including, for example, dismissal for gross misconduct. Such agreements are used where the employer and employee mutually agree to bring the employment relationship to an end, typically following an employment dispute.

Settlement agreements are a matter for individual employers and no agreement can prevent either party from making a disclosure in the public interest if they choose to do so.