Select committee: Public Accounts Committee
Conclusion 26
5th Report - NHS financial sustainability
Published 29 Jan 2025
Addressed to HM Treasury
Public Accounts Committee NHS financial sustainability All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
We asked what was being done to improve productivity through the use of new technologies. NHSE told us the NHS currently lacks a consistent data infrastructure and that NHS providers varied in terms of their levels of technological maturity.50 NHSE said that it was putting modern technology into some of its providers that “have lived on paper”. While it still had work to do to complete the programme, its aim was to do so over the next 18 months.51 NHSE told us that the NHS providers that have already implemented electronic patient records have productivity levels that are 45 Q 3 46 Q 31 47 Q 38 48 C&AG’s Report, para 4.21 49 Q 3 50 Qq 79, 80 51 Q 79 16 13% higher than those yet to implement them.52 We note that the then Secretary of State for Health first challenged the NHS to go paperless in 2013, setting a target date of 2018.53 52 Q 10 53 Jeremy Hunt challenges NHS to go paperless by 2018 - GOV.UK (Press release 16 January 2013) 17
From: Public Accounts Committee, 5th Report - NHS financial sustainability (HC 350), 29 January 2025
Government response
Latest Treasury Minutes progress report to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Fifth Report of Session 2024-26
The government responded to the whole report on 4 June 2026.
Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Fifth report from Session 2024-25
Published 16 May 2025.
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government agrees with several of the Committee's recommendations, including on earlier planning guidance, productivity and capital-to-revenue switches, is still considering others, and disagrees with the recommendation on paperless providers.
- On planning, the government agrees that guidance should be issued earlier, with a target implementation date of December 2025. NHSE and DHSC are working so guidance is published "ideally before Christmas".
- On the ten-year plan, prevention spending definitions and community funding, the government "is considering" the recommendations and says it will notify the Committee of its response "when it is confirmed".
- The government agrees that NHSE should set out its productivity actions (target: Autumn 2025). It says the plan for productivity improvements from 2026-27 "will be set out following Phase 2 of the Spending Review".
- The government disagrees with the recommendation on paper reduction, saying it "does not agree that providers should be fully paperless" as some patient communications must be sent by letter. It expects trusts and ICBs "to restrict fax machine use".