Recommendation 15

We note that the Government decided to resist an amendment to the Health and Care Bill that would have required it to publish independently verified assessment of health, social care and public health workforce numbers at least once every two years, leaving a gap between its rhetoric about supporting frontline staff and the biggest single long-term measure that would relieve that pressure. Without an independent forecast of future workforce needs, it remains impossible for anyone to know whether enough doctors, nurses or care staff are being trained. We still believe that giving an assurance to NHS staff that the appropriate number of new staff will be trained in the future is the biggest single long-term measure the Government can take to gain the confidence of frontline staff that it has a grip of this problem. Unless it can do that, the risk is that generous taxpayer-funded settlements for services or capital are wasted.