Consultants

HC Deb 04 July 2000 vol 353 cc142-3W

32. Mr. Efford

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to monitor the performance levels of NHS consultants. [127542]

Mr. Denham

We are currently negotiating a new contract for National Health Service consultants and have agreed with the British Medical Association the key areas to be negotiated over the next few months. That will include the introduction of employer-based appraisal for all consultants which, coupled with tighter job planning mechanisms, will provide NHS managers with a more effective framework to manage the performance and time of their consultants.