Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions his Department has had with Integrated Care Boards on the source of funding for redundancy packages resulting from the abolition of NHS England.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Following the Prime Minister’s announcement of the abolition of NHS England, we are clear about the need for a smaller centre, as well as scaling back integrated care board running costs and National Health Service provider corporate costs in order to reduce waste and bureaucracy in the NHS.
Funding arrangements have been agreed with His Majesty’s Treasury to enable redundancies to be funded within the Department of Health and Social Care’s (DHSC’s) Spending Review settlement. £860 million of planned resource funding has been re-profiled from later to earlier years of DHSC’s Spending Review settlement. This will enable DHSC to continue making progress towards halving headcount across DHSC and NHS England. This will unlock savings of £1 billion a year by the end of the Parliament, equivalent to the cost of over 115,000 extra hip and knee operations.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to allocate funding for redundancy packages (a) following the abolition of NHS England and (b) for Integrated Care Boards.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Following the Prime Minister’s announcement of the abolition of NHS England, we are clear on the need for a smaller centre, as well as scaling back integrated care board running costs and National Health Service provider corporate cost reductions in order to reduce waste and bureaucracy.
£860 million of planned resource funding has been re-profiled from later to earlier years of the Department’s Spending Review settlement. This will enable the Department to continue making progress towards halving headcount across the Department and NHS England. This will unlock savings of £1 billion a year by the end of the Parliament, equivalent to the cost of over 115,000 extra hip and knee operations.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what representations his Department has received from Integrated Care Boards on (a) the abolition of NHS England and (b) subsequent planned redundancies.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Department has not received any formal representations from the integrated care boards regarding the abolition of NHS England or any subsequent planned redundancies. This includes anything in relation to NHS England’s announced voluntary redundancy scheme, which will be open to applications from Monday 1 December until 11:59pm on Sunday 14 December.
Communications between the Department and the integrated care boards regarding workforce planning are managed within existing operational processes.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 8 August 2025 to Question 67474 on NHS England: Redundancy, when his Department will provide an update on the cost impact of integrating NHS England with the DHSC.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Following the Prime Minister’s announcement of the abolition of NHS England, we are clear on the need for a smaller centre. Reducing the size of the Department and NHS England will ultimately deliver hundreds of millions of pounds of savings that can be recycled into front line care. There will be no direct reduction in frontline staff as a result of these changes.
As part of the transition to the new structure, on Tuesday 11 November, NHS England announced a voluntary redundancy scheme, to allow staff to leave before the merger takes place. The scheme will run from Monday 1 December until 11:59pm on Sunday 14 December.
In making these reductions, we will not be cutting any investment into the NHS or frontline services; the savings made will more than offset the cost of redundancy payments.
We have recently announced the Spending Review settlement which provides an additional £29 billion of annual day-to-day spending in real terms by 2028/29 compared to 2023/24. We are now carefully reviewing how the settlement is prioritised, including making provision for redundancy costs.
The Government is committed to transparency and will consider how best to ensure that the public and parliamentarians are appropriately informed of the relevant information, at the appropriate time. Any publication requirements that become applicable will be complied with as a minimum.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether funding from local budgets will be used to pay redundancy packages, in the context of the abolition of NHS England.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
Following the Prime Minister’s announcement of the abolition of NHS England, we are clear on the need for a smaller centre, as well as scaling back integrated care board running costs and NHS provider corporate cost reductions in order to reduce waste and bureaucracy.
£860 million of planned resource funding has been re-profiled from later to earlier years of the Department’s Spending Review settlement. This will enable the Department to continue making progress towards halving headcount across the Department and NHS England. This will unlock savings of £1 billion a year by the end of the Parliament, equivalent to the cost of over 115,000 extra hip and knee operations.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled Billions to be redirected back into patient care with NHS reform, published on 11 November, if he will publish the upfront costs of these reforms.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The reforms announced on 11 November will involve some upfront costs associated with organisational change, including the reintegration of NHS England and the restructuring of integrated care boards.
The Government is committed to ensuring that Parliament and the public are appropriately informed of these costs. Information will be published at the appropriate time, in line with established reporting mechanisms, to ensure transparency and accountability. The Department will continue to provide updates as the reforms progress.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Further to his Department’s press release entitled Billions to be redirected back into patient care with NHS reform, published on 11 November, if he will publish the calculations for the stated £1bn a year saving.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The reintegration of NHS England and the restructuring of integrated care boards will deliver efficiencies that are expected to save £1 billion a year by the end of this Parliament. These savings will be achieved through streamlining functions, reducing duplication, and redirecting resources towards frontline patient care.
The Government is committed to transparency in how these figures are calculated. The methodology underpinning the £1 billion saving estimate will be set out through established mechanisms, including publication of supporting documentation where appropriate. This will ensure that both Parliament and the public are able to scrutinise the basis of the savings. Further detail will be brought forward in due course, in line with our commitment to provide clear and timely information.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of General Practice partners operating in England.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
This data is published monthly by NHS England. The publication is available at the following link:
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to implement the recommendations of the report by Care England entitled The Current State of Dementia Diagnosis & Care in England, published on 31 July 2025.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The report highlights systemic challenges in dementia care. Our health system has often struggled to support those with complex needs, including those with dementia. This is why, under the 10-Year Plan, those living with dementia will benefit from improved care planning and better services.
We will deliver the first ever Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia to deliver rapid and significant improvements in the quality of care and productivity. This will be informed by phase one of the independent commission into adult social care, expected in 2026.
The report recommends that a national standardised diagnostic pathway must be established, as well as a nationally mandated standard of care across every stage of the dementia care pathway.
The Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia will seek to reduce unwarranted variation and narrow inequality for those living with dementia and will set national standards for dementia care and redirect National Health Service priorities to provide the best possible care and support.
In developing the Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia, we are engaging with a wide group of partners to understand what should be included to ensure the best outcomes for people living with dementia. As part of this exercise, we are considering all options, including reviewing metrics and targets.