NHS Confederation responds to the Secretary of State speech
Responding to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care's speech at NHS Confed Expo, Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said:
“Leaders will be pleased to hear the Secretary of State’s commitment to trust and devolve more decision making to a local level. This is sensible and welcome, and we’re pleased to see this part of the Hewitt Review, but this promise must be translated into practice, with ICS leaders trusted and given patience and space to deliver.
“Leaders are all for measures to help improve performance, and increased transparency will help to better identify any areas of performance at risk of being left behind as efforts are prioritised around the core aims of the slimmed down NHS mandate. Leaders will welcome the clarity the new mandate provides, enabling them to put a laser-like focus on cutting waiting lists and recover performance.
“But to do this the NHS will need stability and support. While we await the workforce plan and necessary accompanying investment, news that staff will get the support they need in terms of technology is positive and forward-thinking. Leaders will particularly welcome the Secretary of State’s ambitions to use AI to help reduce health inequalities. However, there is a difference between simply supplying tech to the NHS and enabling it to be used appropriately, so we need to see further details around these plans.
“The immediate threat to the delivery of the mandate is ongoing industrial action, and while the Secretary of State indicated the government is ready to have further discussions, we need to see this turned into action."
About us
We are the membership organisation that brings together, supports and speaks for the whole healthcare system in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The members we represent employ 1.5 million staff, care for more than 1 million patients a day and control £150 billion of public expenditure. We promote collaboration and partnership working as the key to improving population health, delivering high-quality care and reducing health inequalities.
