Select Committee · Public Accounts Committee

Costs of clinical negligence

Status: Open Opened: 10 Jul 2025 18 recommendations 9 conclusions 1 report

The PAC in its 2025 scrutiny the Department of Health and Social Care’s (DHSC) annual report and accounts 2023-24 called on government to reduce tragic incidences of patient harm. The PAC found it unacceptable that DHSC had yet to develop a plan to deal with the cost of clinical negligence claims, with so much taxpayers’ …

Clear

Reports

1 report
Title HC No. Published Items Response
64th Report - Costs of clinical negligence HC 1234 30 Jan 2026 27 Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

1 item
1 Conclusion 64th Report - Costs of clinical neglige… Not Addressed

Past committees consistently raised concerns about rising clinical negligence costs.

On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence from the Department of Health and Social Care (the Department), NHS England and NHS Resolution on the costs of clinical negligence.1 Our predecessor committees reported on clinical negligence in 2002 and 2017, and both this …

Government response. The government's response broadly addresses the wider issue of rising clinical negligence costs and mentions David Lock KC's ongoing advisory role. However, it explicitly states it has no plans to publish a separate report of David Lock KC's work, and …
HM Treasury

Oral evidence sessions

1 session
Date Witnesses
20 Nov 2025 Elizabeth O'Mahony · Department of Health and Social Care, Helen Vernon · NHS Resolution, Professor Aidan Fowler · NHS England, Samantha Jones · Department of Health and Social Care View ↗

Correspondence

4 letters
DateDirectionTitle
21 May 2026 From cttee Letter to the Permanent Secretary at the Department for Health and Social Care …
12 Jan 2026 To cttee Letter from the Chief Financial Officer at NHS England relating to the Committe…
15 Dec 2025 To cttee Letter from the Permanent Secretary at the Department for Health and Social Car…
15 Dec 2025 To cttee Letter from the Permanent Secretary at the Department for Health and Social Car…