The NHS Confederation has supported the Government’s objectives but has also expressed concerns about the significant risks involved with these reforms.
We are concerned that the debate about the changes has become increasingly polarised and entrenched, with little movement on practical solutions for managing these risks. This is destabilising for theNHS, which is already making structural changes to meet the agenda set by the Government.
This paper seeks to identify the broad areas of concern and then to suggest potential options in response. There is a recurring theme running through our analysis – that there has often been a reality gap between ideas that are good in principle and the details of practical delivery, which have often looked opaque or too optimistic.