§ Mr. WebbTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the role of(a) the Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Strategic Health Authority and (b) his Department in determining the progress of the strategic outline case being prepared by North Bristol NHS Trust. [164383]
§ Ms Rosie WintertonThe process for the next prioritisation round is detailed as follows:
Health communities will describe their proposals for major capital investments in strategic outline cases (SOCs) and these will form the basis of the scheme's assessment. SOCs must demonstrate both health service need and deliverability. Both the trust and the main commissioners must be in agreement that the investment is likely to be affordable and deliverable. In addition the "host" strategic health authority (SHA), the SHA within which the proposed investment will fall, must agree that these assessments are realistic before submitting the SOC to the Department.
1225WCentral assessment will not second guess the SHA's view on health service need; instead, it will concentrate on factors that influence the deliverability of the scheme, including the quality of stakeholder support, project management arrangements and technical considerations.
SOCs will be peer-reviewed by other SHAs operating as part of a technical group, coordinated and guided by the Department. The technical group will report to the Department of Health which will make a recommendation to Ministers. We expect decisions to be announced in the summer.