§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average time taken between the initial advertising of NHS IT contracts with a value of more than £5 million and the final contract award has been in the last month. [88178]
§ Ms BlearsNo national health service information technology contracts with a value of more than £5 million have been awarded in the last month.
The Department, at the centre, only approves NHS information management and technology business cases that exceed £20 million whole life cost. The remaining cases are dealt with at various intermediate levels in the NHS; previously by regional offices and now strategic health authorities. We do not maintain a central list of cases approved in the NHS.
Because of their complexity projects of this size normally take over a year to complete.
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he has issued basic standards and specifications as part of the NHS IT programme. [88164]
§ Ms BlearsInformation standards for use by the national health service in England are maintained and published by the NHS information authority.
As part of the implementation programme for NHS information technology currently going forward within the Government's "21st Century IT" strategy, a national specification for the integrated care records service element was published for consultation on 26 July 2002.
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§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what testing has been carried out on the procurement model for the NHS IT programme. [88165]
§ Mr. LammyThee procurement strategy for the national programme for information technology in the National Health Service will be in line with European Union Official Journal of the European Communities (OJEC) regulations and procedures and also covered by the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA).
The purpose of the procurement strategy is to simplify the contracting environment for NHS IT projects by reducing the duplication and delay that can be the result of running numerous local procurement exercises in parallel.
The national programme and its key deliverables are subject to the Office of Government Commerce Gateway Review process. They will examine the procurement strategy and provide assurance that the selected procurement approach is appropriate for the proposed programme and in line with good practice.
The national IT programme has also appointed commercial lawyers, DLA and Alien & Overy, to provide legal advice and support.
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health which IT projects being undertaken by the NHS(a) are running over budget and (b) have been subject to a significant respecification. [88167]
§ Ms BlearsThe Department does not keep central records of local information management and technology projects. Projects are managed by the local National Health Service organisation under the relevant standing financial instructions. There is no general requirement to report cost over-runs or re-specifications to the Department.
§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations he has received on the implications of a moratorium in localized IT purchasing by the NHS for the viability of smaller suppliers. [88168]
§ Ms BlearsThere is no moratorium on localised information technology purchasing by the National Health Service.
The new national programme for IT in the NHS was announced by my noble Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, on 12 June 2002. We are planning significant increases in expenditure from April 2003 onwards in the NHS following the recommendations of the Wanless Report. The final details of the new funding in the 2002 Spending Review are still being worked on and an announcement will be made shortly.
The Department has issued a prior information notice (PIN), a tender notice that is published as part of the Official Journal of the European Communities (OJEC) series. The PIN invites interested parties to respond to fulfilling the role of prime contractors and suppliers in the delivery of the national IT programme.
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§ Chris GraylingTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on progress in implementing the NHS National IT Strategy. [88166]
§ Mr. LammyThe national programme for information technology in the national health service focuses on the key developments that will make a significant difference to improving the patient experience and the delivery of care and services. There are four key deliverables: electronic appointment booking, an electronic care records service, an electronic prescribing service and an underpinning IT infrastructure with sufficient capacity to support the critical national applications and local systems.
To support better central direction a ministerial task force has been established under the chairmanship of my noble friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State. Each strategic health authority has appointed a chief information officer. They have a pivotal role in including costed IT plans in their local delivery plans and ensuring primary care trusts and NHS trusts implement and use the core IT solutions determined at national level.
Since Richard Granger took up the post of Director General of NHS IT on 7 October there has been a great deal of progress and accelerating the mobilisation of the national programme has been a priority.
A significant step forward has been the issue of a prior information notice (PIN), a tender notice that is published as part of the Official Journal of the European Communities (OJEC) series. The PIN invites interested parties to respond to fulfilling the role of prime contractors and suppliers in the delivery of the national IT programme.
The focus in the early part of the year will remain on strengthening programme management, including risk management and progress monitoring, ensuring faster and smarter procurement and providing a clear and meaningful critical path for implementation.