Home / Health / NHS Slashes Bureaucracy, Invests £1 Billion in Frontline Care
NHS Slashes Bureaucracy, Invests £1 Billion in Frontline Care
12 Nov
Summary
- NHS to cut 50% of administrative staff and managers
- Redundancy costs of £1 billion to be recouped through savings
- Reforms aim to reduce "unnecessary bureaucracy" and improve patient services
In a major restructuring of the National Health Service (NHS), the UK government has agreed to fund £1 billion in redundancy costs to cut around 50% of administrative staff and managers across NHS England and the Department of Health.
The reforms, which are expected to be announced in the upcoming Budget on November 26, 2025, are aimed at slashing "unnecessary bureaucracy" and redirecting the savings to improve patient services. According to the Department of Health, every £1 billion saved in bureaucracy costs is enough to fund an extra 116,000 hip and knee operations.
The NHS will be permitted to overspend its budget this year to pay for the redundancies, with the costs to be recouped further down the line. NHS England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey has expressed confidence that the funding issue has been resolved, stating that the talks with the Treasury have been "constructive."
The government has also announced plans to bring NHS England back into the Department of Health within the next two years, as part of its efforts to transform the health service into a more efficient and patient-focused organization.
