NHS must weed out low-ranking unproductive bosses, warns report backed by ex-Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt
THE NHS needs to weed out low-ranking unproductive bosses, a report says.
There are too many layers of management, the Policy Exchange think tank warned.
It found half of staff with “manager” in their title are not senior leaders and too many are in Whitehall instead of hospitals.
And eight in ten health boards had not fired a boss for poor performance in at least a year.
But the report, backed by ex- health secretary Jeremy Hunt, said the NHS is “under-managed” compared to other sectors.
It added: “Too much discussion is on the volume of managers.
“A greater focus on capability is needed. We need to reappraise where managers are positioned — the central bureaucracy is significant.”
Labour’s own review found the number of penpushers in the Department of Health has soared.
Lord Ara Darzi said regulation has become a “burden” to frontline NHS chiefs.
Mr Hunt, health secretary from 2012 to 2018, said: “It is without a doubt that effective management is required if we want to deliver a high-performing NHS.”
The report recommended NHS England be shut down and the Department of Health be given control of the health service.
An NHS spokesman said: “A third fewer staff work in NHS England than in 2022, saving almost £0.5billion for patient care.”
It came as the Institute for Fiscal Studies found Britain’s rise in ill health benefit payments was not mirrored in other countries.
Payouts are up to 3.9 million, from 2.8 million in 2019, with one in ten adults now getting handouts