Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what requirements his Department has placed on clinical commissioning groups to make financial savings in the last four years.

In its mandate for NHS England, the Government sets a clear objective for NHS England to secure improvements in value for money across the NHS in order to maximise resources for frontline patient care.

NHS England has responsibility for clinical commissioning group (CCG) allocations. While NHS England does not set specific financial savings targets for them, CCGs need to manage their expenditure within their allocation whilst meeting the business rules as set out in the planning guidance, including setting out clear and credible plans for making efficiency improvements.