Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that the abolition of NHS England does not lead to a loss of institutional knowledge critical to NHS operations.

Ministers and senior Department officials will work with the new executive team at the top of NHS England, led by Sir Jim Mackey, to jointly lead this transformation.

There are talented, dedicated public servants working across the country, and at every level, of NHS England and the Department. The transition team will be working at pace to develop plans for the future to give certainty to those with the talent and skills needed for the future and ensure they are retained.

As we work to return many of NHS England’s current functions to the Department, we will ensure that we continue to evaluate impacts of all kinds.

As we work through the next steps on merging the two organisations, we will be putting in place plans to ensure there are no risks to patient safety and that critical information and systems are effectively transferred.