Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of the announcement by the Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Foundation Trust and King's Health Partners that they intend to create a new clinical academic facility for cardiovascular and respiratory services, whether they intend to review the proposal from NHS England to close the Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Foundation Trust's congenital heart disease services.

At its public meeting on 30 November 2017 and following its review of and public consultation on Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) services in England, the NHS England Board agreed to note the outline proposal presented by the Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Foundation Trust for how full compliance against the standards might be achieved; to confirm that NHS England should work with the Royal Brompton and other potential partners on the full range of options for delivering a solution that could deliver full compliance with the standards and ensure the sustainability of other connected services; and to continue to commission level 1 CHD services from the Trust, conditional on the Trust demonstrating sufficient progress within required timescales.

The commissioning of CHD services in England is a matter for NHS England. The Government will continue to hold NHS England to account as it takes forward the recommendations of its review.