Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he has had with NHS England on (a) the appointment of a single Chair for two different NHS Trusts and (b) ensuring that the effectiveness of those Trusts' (i) governance, (ii) accountability and (iii) local representation are not compromised by such arrangements.

The Government and NHS England support and expect collaboration between National Health Service trusts. Shared leadership, including having a shared chair, is one way which trusts can collaborate to address the issues they are facing.

With any governance model they have in place, NHS trusts are required to meet the conditions in the NHS provider licence to ensure that organisations operate in a way that is safe, financially sustainable, cooperative, and accountable.

Trusts can work with their regional NHS England teams to discuss potential shared leadership arrangements to ensure that governance and accountability remain effective, while realising the benefits of collaboration.