National Audit Office 18 January 2019
- This report
- summarises the financial position of NHS England, CCGs and trusts 2017/18
- examines the financial flows and incentives in the NHS and whether these encourage long-term financial sustainability
- examines how local partnerships of health and care organisations are progressing, and what the Department of Health & Social Care, NHS England and NHS Improvement are doing to support them
Report conclusions:"This report covers 2017-18, so we first conclude on financial sustainability for that year. We consider that the growth in waiting lists and slippage in waiting times, and the existence of substantial deficits in some parts of the system, offset by surpluses elsewhere do not add up to a picture that we can describe as sustainable. Recently, the long-term plan for the NHS has been published, and government has committed to longer-term stable growth in funding for NHS England.
In our view these developments are positive, and the planning approach we have seen so far looks prudent. We will really be able to judge whether the funding package will be enough to achieve the NHS’ ambitions when we know the level of settlement for other key areas of health spending that emerges from the Spending Review later in the year. This will tell us whether there is enough to deal with the embedded problems from the last few years and move the health system forward. Let’s hope there are not too many strings attached."
