Head of the National Audit Office Sir John Bourn has given an unqualified opinion on each of the 20 NHS summarised accounts, prepared by the Secretary of State for Health from the accounts for individual health organisations. Today’s report from the NAO draws attention to a number of issues, including overall financial performance, fraud in […]
This briefing has been prepared to help inform the House of Commons Health Select Committee examination of Health Resource Allocation.
Head of the National Audit Office Sir John Bourn today reported to Parliament on the propriety of the Department of Health’s award of a contract to PowderJect Pharmaceuticals to supply smallpox vaccine. The report also covers the procedures followed by the Department in purchasing emergency supplies of smallpox and anthrax vaccine; and the Department’s general […]
The Drug Treatment and Testing Order can be a successful community sentence for some drug misusing offenders who would otherwise have been considered for a prison sentence, according to a report to Parliament today by the National Audit Office. However, only 28 per cent of Orders terminated in 2003 were completed in full or were […]
A National Audit Office report today finds that NHS trusts need to do more to identify property they no longer need and dispose of it more quickly and effectively. Better management could bring forward some sales and release significant sums for use elsewhere in the NHS. The NHS has one of the largest estates in […]
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported today that the Local Improvement Finance Trust (LIFT) initiative, launched in 2001, is an effective means of improving primary health and social care. The LIFT model has a number of strengths: it takes a long term strategic approach to local health provision which combines the […]
In a report to Parliament today, head of the National Audit Office Sir John Bourn gave the results of his annual examination of the 19 summarised accounts which cover the financial activities of the NHS in England. Sir John’s opinion on each of the 19 summarised accounts was unqualified. The report drew attention, however, to […]
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, today published his report to Parliament on the results of his examination of the Public Health Laboratory Service Board Accounts for 1998-99. Sir John issued a report to Parliament on the account concerning the breakdown of financial controls following the contracting out by the Board of […]
The enormous human and financial costs of clinical negligence are highlighted today in a National Audit Office report. The estimated net present value of claims outstanding against the NHS alleging clinical negligence has risen to £2.6 billion, plus an estimated liability of a further £1.3 billion where negligent episodes are likely to have occurred, but […]
The NAO has investigated how NHS Shared Business Services handled its backlog of unprocessed clinical correspondence.
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported to Parliament today on the Summarised Accounts of the National Health Service in Scotland for 1998-99. The report describes the findings of the appointed auditors of the individual health bodies, discusses developments in accounting and financial control, considers the financial performance of the NHS in […]
This investigation covers how the UK government determines the amount of funding it allocates to the devolved administrations.
The Department of Health now needs to gain a better understanding of the different ways to commission personalised services for users, and how these lead to improvements in user outcomes.
Recorded sickness absence by Prison Service staff has increased since 1999, especially absence caused by stress, anxiety or depression, according to a report by the National Audit Office. However, much of the overall increase may be down to under-reporting in earlier years. Today’s report points out that the Service has made considerable progress in improving […]
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, told Parliament today that trustee bodies administering charitable funds associated with the NHS have made substantial progress in adopting high standards of corporate governance and have adequate controls in place to ensure that business is properly conducted. Sir John concludes that the current arrangements for supervision […]
Funding for ongoing health care is a complex and highly sensitive area, which can affect some of the most vulnerable people in society and those that care for them.
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, told Parliament today that the prevalence of obesity in England had tripled over the last 20 years and continues to rise. Most adults in England are now overweight, and one in five is obese. Producing the first authoritative estimates of the costs and consequences of obesity […]
Sir John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office, reported to Parliament today that many NHS trusts and orthopaedic consultants apply good practice in the way that they handle total hip replacements. However, there are significant variations in performance, and there is need for good practice to be spread more widely for the benefit of […]
This report investigates the NHS’s response to the cyber attack that affected it in May 2017 and the impact on health services.