Why is Government taking back control of the NHS? 5 main reasons in Richard Sloggett’s latest HSJ article. Managing risk, the manifesto, practicalities with the Act, party management and access to data are all behind the decision

1. Risk – There has been increasing frustration that the way the Lansley Act works in practice is that Ministers take all the blame when things go wrong, but the NHS the credit for any good news stories. Ministers want a clearer role in the NHS recovery.
2. Prioritisation – Across the Long Term Plan, Conservative manifesto and Covid recovery something has to give. The Conservative manifesto is what the Government wants to point to delivering come 2024 and this direction setting power in the Bill is designed to ensure that.
3. Practicalities – With NHS England morphing into an ever larger entity, the current levers of an annual mandate, the NHS Board and the outcomes frameworks are not strong enough. The directional powers are designed to ensure there is better oversight.
4. Party management – NHS England has felt difficult and remote to backbench parliamentarians. Bringing greater direction setting powers to Ministers including oversight of difficult local reconfigurations of services is designed to address this.
5. Data and information – References to which are littered throughout the leaked document. It is hoped this new power will be a more effective lever at providing the Government with the information about the NHS it requests and needs in order to play an effective oversight role.

Read the full article: https://www.hsj.co.uk/policy-and-regulation/why-government-is-taking-back-control-of-the-nhs/7029415.article