Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord O'Shaughnessy on 10 July (HL8980, HL8981, HL8982 and HL8983), what action they are taking to ensure that NHS England makes clear to Clinical Commissioning Groups that the national guidelines on access for patients to Liothyronine (T3) are expected to be fully followed.

NHS England has advised that the joint clinical working group has agreed that National Health Service clinical commissioners will reiterate to clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) by the end of July 2018 that the intention of the guidance was to end the routine prescription of liothyronine only where it was clinically appropriate to do so.

CCGs are accountable to NHS England, which has a key role to ensure that they, as statutory organisations, deliver the best possible services and outcomes for patients within their financial allocation. Where there are concerns about CCGs failing or at risk of failing to discharge its functions, NHS England has the ability to exercise formal powers to either provide an enhanced support to a CCG, or in rare circumstances to intervene. Although the Department ultimately holds NHS England to account for its commissioning activity, including that of CCGs, the Health and Social Care Act 2012 ensures commissioning activity meets the requirements of each local area.