Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to make an announcement on future running costs for integrated care boards.

NHS England has asked the integrated care boards (ICBs) to act primarily as strategic commissioners of health and care services, and to reduce the duplication of responsibilities within their structure to achieve a 50% cost reduction in their running cost allowance. NHS England provided additional guidance to ICBs, National Health Service trusts, and NHS foundation trusts on 1 April 2025, where ICBs were tasked with developing plans by the end of May setting out how they will manage their resources to deliver across their priorities.

In his letter to ICBs, Sir Jim Mackay committed to greater transparency and moving back to a fair shares allocation policy over time. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/working-together-in-2025-26-to-lay-the-foundations-for-reform/

No plans for an announcement by my Rt Hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care have been made.