Government abolishes NHS England

Source: BBC News

NHS England will be abolished and brought under “democratic control” in an attempt to cut bureaucracy and duplication, Sir Keir Starmer has announced.

The prime minister said the move would free up money for front-line services.

The government said it expected around 50% of the jobs at NHS England, which as of December had 14,400 staff, and the Department of Health, which has 3,500 staff, to go.

In a speech in Hull, Sir Keir said for too long politicians had “chosen to hide behind vast arrays of quangos” – organisations funded by taxpayers but not directly controlled by the government.

The government said work would begin immediately to return many of NHS England’s current functions to the Department of Health and Social Care, with the aim of completing the process in two years.

The significant move gives the government more control and accountability over one of their key pledges – to cut NHS waiting times.

NHS England – which the government dubbed “the world’s largest quango” – oversees the health service, working with government to agree funding and priorities, as well as monitoring the performance of local NHS services.

It was given autonomy by the then-Conservative Health Secretary Andrew Lansley in 2012, with the aim of freeing the organisation from interference by politicians.