Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much each NHS trust and foundation trust has spent on advice and litigation relating to the tendering and allocation of contracts for NHS services in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

The Department does not hold the information requested. Foundation trusts and NHS trusts include information on litigation costs as part of their annually published accounts, but a breakdown into types of litigation cost is not available.

When contracting for services, we would expect NHS trusts, foundation trusts and commissioners to act in a way which is transparent, fair and proportionate, and which secures the best services for their patients.