NHS Confederation responds to Sir Jim Mackey's letter to health leaders

Responding to NHS England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey’s letter to health leaders, Matthew Taylor, Chief Executive of the NHS Confederation, said:

“Our members will welcome Sir Jim setting out his ambitions on day one and recognising the efforts from leaders across the system as part of the 25/26 planning round. We are pleased to see the significant reduction in the planned deficit to £311 million and the proposal to move towards a multi-year approach to planning. The letter provides health leaders with some further details about the considerations that need to be taken into account as they work to deliver some very challenging plans over the course of this financial year.

“Health leaders are committed to balancing the NHS’s books, improving performance and implementing the government’s three shifts. The letter’s restatement of the central role that ICBs will play is very welcome. With many systems at different stages some ICBs will need support on this journey to develop the necessary skills and capabilities to support their strategic commissioning function.

“We share NHS England’s and the government’s commitment to improving performance. But there is no shying away from the fact that some organisations will need to deliver eye-watering efficiency savings which will require some cuts to services while ICBs and trusts are tasked with reducing their running costs. These factors will make it challenging for NHS leaders to find the balance between improving performance and implement the reforms needed to put the NHS on a sustainable footing.”