Summary

  • Thousands of jobs to be cut after Keir Starmer announces NHS England will be abolished to "cut bureaucracy" and bring management of the health service "back into democratic control"

  • Speaking in Hull, the prime minister says the state is "overstretched" and "unfocused"

  • The move partially reverses a Conservative-led reorganisation of the health service in 2012, which created NHS England, which to handle its day-to-day running

  • But the government says NHS England has "burdensome layers of bureaucracy without any clear lines of accountability"

  • Shadow Health Minister Caroline Johnson has asked if Labour is up to the task of finding NHS savings given its "failure" to run the health service in Wales

  • It's hardly surprising ministers want more direct control of the NHS, given its importance to voters, our political correspondent Henry Zeffman writes

Chris Mason on why scrapping NHS England matters

Live Reporting

Edited by Jenna Moon, Jemma Crew & Malu Cursino

  1. Your Questions Answered

    Did this decision come out of the blue?

    Nick Triggle
    Health correspondent

    Naomi contacted us to ask has this come out of the blue?

    Within the NHS and Westminster, the writing has been on the wall for NHS England for some months.

    Even in the latter years of the Tory government, health ministers expressed frustration that they weren't in charge of the day-to-day running of the health service.

    NHS England was set up as part of the Andrew Lansley reforms in 2012. As the years have passed, there has been a frustration in government.

    When Labour came in, it was clear Wes Streeting wanted more control of the NHS - he saw a lot of duplication and bureaucracy roles that existed in the Department of Health and NHS England.

    In recent weeks we've seen NHS England's chief executive Amanda Pritchard saying she was stepping down at the end of the March - and a number of her senior leadership team have followed suit.

    So bit by bit we did start to see there was going to be a significant change. This, however, is as big a change as you could possibly get at the heart of the NHS management structure.

  2. Your Questions Answered

    What does NHS England do?

    The first question we're getting from you is on NHS England - asking what the body does and who works there.

    NHS England leads the NHS in England.

    It takes the money provided by the government and funnels it into the different parts of the health service.

    It has therefore been NHS England's job to translate minister's priorities into the services people get on the frontline.

    The body is also responsible for things like overseeing training and collecting data, as well as managing GP services.

    About 18,000 people work for NHS England and the Department of Health, but we expect this workforce to get cut by 50% after today's announcement.

  3. Your Questions Answered

    Experts answer your questions - watch live now

    We're answering your questions on Prime Minister Keir Starmer's announcement, with health correspondent Nick Triggle and political correspondent Helen Catt.

    Follow along by pressing the watch live button at the top of the page.

    • This is part of our Your Voice Your BBC News project, which you can find out more about here
  4. BBC Verify

    Can AI do jobs better than civil servants?

    By Marc Cieslak, AI correspondent

    Ahead of his speech this morning, Starmer said in a Daily Telegraph article that “no person’s substantive time should be spent on a task where digital or AI can do it better, quicker and to the same high quality and standard.”

    Big question marks still hang over the risk presented by a wide variety of AI technologies, while many can speed up certain tasks, note taking and transcribing interviews or meetings for instance, they still require human oversight to ensure accuracy.

    With many jobs - especially when it comes to running the country - the devil is often in the detail and the jury is most certainly still out when it comes to the risks posed by relying on or leaning heavily into AI.

    The PM talks about AI in very broad strokes and there’s very little detail about how it will specifically be used.

  5. Your Questions Answered

    Have questions? Get in touch

    As we've been hearing, the government has announced NHS England will be scrapped – but what does this mean for patients and the wider NHS?

    Our experts will be answering your questions shortly - get in touch:

    • WhatsApp: +44 7756 165803

    In some cases a selection of your comments and questions will be published, displaying your name and location as you provide it unless you state otherwise. But don't worry, your contact details will never be published.

  6. What Wes Streeting has told the House of Commons

    Wes StreetingGetty Images

    Health Secretary Wes Streeting continues to answer questions from MPs in the House of Commons after this morning’s announcement that NHS England is set to be scrapped.

    Streeting is touting the benefits of this decision, saying it will lead to “hundreds of millions” in savings and adding that each pound not “wasted” on bureaucracy can be spent on patient care.

    Shadow Health Secretary Caroline Johnson, though, asked whether Labour is up to the task given its “failure” to successfully run the NHS in Wales.

    And, Lib Dem MP Alison Bennett emphasised the need to reform social care too, as well as questioning whether legislation would be needed to deliver the plans for change - Streeting suggested it wouldn’t.

    We’ll continue to bring you analysis of what the decision means for the NHS here, so stick with us.

  7. This government has been critiqued on creation of new quangos

    Helen Catt
    Political correspondent

    The prime minister says he wants to get rid of over regulation and quangos.

    He was scathing about what he calls Westminster’s knee-jerk reaction of farming things out to reviews.

    Of course one of the criticisms of his government so far has been the number of reviews and quangos it has created - around 20 quangos so far, including Great British Energy.

    As a reminder, when we say quangos we are referring to Quasi-Autonomous Non-Governmental Organisations.

    These are funded by taxpayers but not directly controlled by central government, and include regulators, cultural institutions and advisory bodies.

  8. Why does NHS England's abolition only affect England?

    NHS England leads the NHS in England - which means the PM's announcement only affects this area.

    After devolution, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland became responsible for a number of policy areas, one of which was health.

    The UK has had devolved governments since the late 1990s, which work alongside the Westminster Parliament.

  9. Former health secretary Hunt commends plan's 'boldness'

    Former Tory chancellor and health secretary Jeremy Hunt now commends the "boldness" of the plan announced today.

    He warns that if this only serves to replace bureaucratic over-centralisation with political over-centralisation "it will fail".

    He asks Streeting about getting rid of central targets, and also whether he agrees the care regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC), retains a "vital" role to call out poor care.

    The health secretary responds that "democratic accountability matters".

    He underlines that over-centralisation "has got to stop", calling this the "biggest decentralisation of power" in the history of the NHS.

  10. Streeting asked if new legislation is needed for NHS England change

    Back in the Commons, Liberal Democrats MP Alison Bennett asks Streeting if new legislation is needed to scrap NHS England and if so, when it will be brought forward.

    Bennett also emphasises the need to reform social care as part of attempts to fix the NHS and asks where the urgency for this is.

    Streeting says much of the change needed to deliver plans can be done without the need for primary legislation - but some new legislation will be needed down the line to enact the government's plan.

    "We will work immediately to move forward," he says.

    On social care, Streeting says the urgency was found with the immediate steps the chancellor took to stabilise the finances of the Department of Health and Social Care, by releasing funding.

    Alison Bennett

  11. Incoming NHS England chair will work to bring it in line with DHSC

    Let's briefly dip away from the House of Commons to bring you remarks from the incoming NHS England chair, Dr Penny Dash.

    As a reminder, NHS England is separate to the NHS itself - it's a public body with statutory functions enabling it to oversee the health service.

    Last month, Amanda Pritchard announced she would be stepping down as the head of NHS England after taking up the role in 2021. She called it a "hugely difficult decision".

    Amanda PritchardGetty Images

    Amanda Pritchard quit as head of NHS England last month

    Today, incoming chair Dr Dash says she is "committed" to working with colleagues across NHS England to ensure the body begins 2025/26 "in the strongest possible position to support the wider NHS".

    She adds that she will help lead the work "to bring together NHSE and DHSC (the Department of Health and Social Care) to reduce duplication and streamline functions."

  12. Job cuts will save millions of pounds, Streeting says

    Shadow Health Minister Caroline Johnson is now asking questions in the Commons.

    She asks how many people will be moved into different roles and lose jobs, and what lessons Labour has learned from its "failure" running the NHS in Wales.

    Streeting, back on his feet, says there are currently 15,300 staff at NHS England, and 3,300 in the Department of Health and Social Care.

    Across both, Streeting says his teams are looking to reduce the overall headcount "by 50%". He adds this will mean "hundreds of millions of pounds worth of savings".

  13. Streeting: We are abolishing biggest quango in world

    "Today we're abolishing the biggest quango in the world," Streeting tells the House of Commons.

    He adds that he is "delighted" with the "capable" leadership team he will be working with to lead NHS England through the transformation.

    "Change is hard," he adds, but says the Labour government will "never duck the hard yards of reform".

    He says there have been a "number" of Conservatives who have told him in private they regret the "2012 reorganisation". "None of them acted," he said.

    Reforms in 2012 saw the creation of NHS England to run the health service as well as the scrapping of primary care trusts in favour of GP-led clinical commissioning groups to organise local services.

  14. NHS England to be brought into health department within two years - Streeting

    We're still hearing from Streeting in the House of Commons who says that over the next two years NHS England will be brought into the Department of Health entirely.

    The reforms set out by the prime minister earlier today will make significant savings of hundreds of millions of pounds a year, he says - money that will go to the frontline of the NHS.

    By slashing through layers of red tape and ending the infantilisation of frontline NHS leaders, we will set local NHS providers free to innovate, develop new productive ways of working and deliver better care for patients, Streeting adds.

  15. Streeting: Every pound wasted can't be spent on treating patients faster

    Health Secretary Wes StreetingPA Media

    More from Health Secretary Wes Streeting, who's speaking in the House of Commons off the back of Keir Starmer's Q&A in Hull.

    Streeting says that the decision to scrap NHS England would have been taken even if the Conservatives hadn't left a "black hole" in the government's finances.

    "Every pound that is wasted on inefficient bureaucracy in good times or bad is a pound that can't be spent on treating patients faster," he says.

    "There is always a duty on ministers to get as much value for taxpayers money as is possible. I cannot honestly say that is achievable with the way my department and NHS England are set up today."

    A reminder: You can watch what Streeting has to say by pushing watch live at the top of the page.

  16. There should be no doubt about scale of challenge ahead - Streeting

    Health Secretary Wes Streeting starts by praising the Labour government's actions to "fix our broken NHS".

    He lists several accomplishments, including delivering two million extra appointments, and "turning the tide" on rising waiting lists.

    "There should be no doubt of the scale of the challenge ahead," he says, adding there is no time or money to waste.

  17. Health secretary speaking in House of Commons
    Breaking

    Health Secretary Wes Streeting is speaking in the House of Commons now, after the PM announced NHS England is being abolished and brought "back into democratic control".

    Press watch live above to follow along.

  18. We won't abandon anybody as we scrap NHS England, says Starmer

    In his last remarks before wrapping up this morning's Q&A session, Starmer talks again about the decision to scrap NHS England.

    As a reminder, this is a separate body from the NHS - as our health correspondent Nick Triggle explains.

    Starmer stresses that employees of NHS England are hugely qualified and says the government will not be abandoning anybody as it moves to scrap the body.

    But, the PM says, we can't look people who want quicker appointments in the eye and say that we're fearful of taking big decisions.

    Prime Minister Keir Starmer delivering a speech where he announced NHS England will be abolished to "cut bureaucracy"PA Media

  19. Starmer also quizzed on diversity programmes

    GB News asks Starmer if it's time to do away with "woke" diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programmes.

    DEI programmes aim to boost workers from diverse backgrounds.

    In the US, President Donald Trump has ordered the shutdown of all federal DEI initiatives, urging the private sector to follow suit.

    Starmer says we must use taxpayer money "wisely" but says the government will not be "slashing its commitment to equality".

    He says he's focused on "stripping away what's unnecessary".

  20. BBC Verify

    Are one in eight young people not in education or work?

    By Ben Chu, Policy & Analysis Correspondent

    The prime minister said one in eight young people are not in education or work.

    This is borne out by the latest Office for National Statistics data which found that between October and December 2024 around 987,000 people aged 16 to 24 years in the UK were not in education, employment or training, around 13.4% of the total

    This was an increase of 110,000 on the same period in 2023.

    However, the ONS said that the Labour Force Survey, on which that estimate was based, has been unreliable due to a falling response rate and should be treated with “caution”.