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 draw up a protocol on how to manage organisational change that transfers responsibilities and accountabilities.

Since the publication of the Morecambe Bay Investigation, the Department and the National Health Service have put in place a number of measures that are designed to ensure that organisational change is well managed.

These include arrangements to support local integration of services and strengthened regional support and oversight. The NHS has also developed a Long Term Plan to provide clear strategic direction to organisations making local changes.

NHS England and NHS Improvement are responsible for ensuring that organisational changes such as the merger of provider organisations are in the interests of patients and taxpayers and manage any risks effectively.