Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Answer of 6 September 2021 to Question 38295 on Accident and Emergency Departments, whether integrated care boards' (ICB) core responsibilities will have been expanded to ensure that each ICB is responsible for everyone in its area who needs emergency care as of 1 July 2022.

The National Health Service (Integrated Care Boards: Exceptions to Core Responsibility) Regulations 2022” imposes additional responsibilities on an integrated care board (ICB) for certain specified persons. The instrument sets out circumstances where an ICB would have additional responsibility for commissioning health services for certain individuals, in addition to the persons where it has core responsibility. The circumstances include commissioning emergency ambulance services or accident and emergency services for any person present within the ICBs’ area.