Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Report of the Morecambe Bay Investigation by Dr Bill Kirkup, published in March 2015, what steps his Department has taken to review how it carries out impact assessments of new policies to identify the risks as well as the resources and time required.

The Department’s Impact Assessment process seeks to identify risks and uncertainties associated with proposed policy changes, following best practice guidance for impact assessments and quality assurance set out by HM Treasury in the Green Book and Aqua Book.

Impact assessment procedures have been strengthened by introducing an internal Senior Review Committee who review and quality assure all impact assessments.

Risk and resource implications are a focus throughout the process and are explicitly set out when the Department publishes impact assessments.