By Ian Quinn
A massive round of NHS redundancies has been signalled by the Government's decision to scrap the entire PCT and SHA network, in the biggest round of cutbacks ever seen in the NHS.
Mr Lansley admitted that after talks with their Liberal Democrat partners, the Conservatives had agreed to go further than they had originally planned by not just scrapping SHAs but also phasing out the 150 PCTs in England, as GPs take over the bulk of commissioning.
The Conservatives had originally planned to maintain PCTs, albeit with a massive reduction in managers, to carry out public health functions.
But this role will now pass to local authorities, who will have a major say in the running of public health alongside social health services.
The Government claims it can slash management cost in the NHS by over 45% in the next four years.
Mr Lansley said he was determined to get rid of what he called ‘distractions, complication and bureaucracy' in NHS decision making, which he said had been a source of huge frustration for GPs.
‘They regard them as a bureaucratic top down system which gets in the way of them making decisions,' he said.
NHS chief executive Sir David Nicholson admitted there would be redundancies on an unprecedented scale. ‘We have to be realistic - there is going to be a big disruption in management,' he said.
However, many NHS managers are expected to find jobs working for GP-led consortia.
The Government's decision to scrap PCTs and SHAs has signalled a massive round of NHS redundancies The Government's decision to scrap PCTs and SHAs has signalled a massive round of NHS redundancies Your questions on the White PaperGot a question about the health White Paper or GPs' new commissioning role?
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