Judge rules against NHS England over consultation on commissioning decisions

A High Court judge has found that NHS England acted unlawfully by failing to properly involve and inform patients about primary care commissioning decisions, it has been reported.

The claimant, Danny Currie, was a patient of the Jubilee Street practice in Tower Hamlets, which has been threatened with closure following the imposition of new funding criteria for GP surgeries.

Leigh Day, Currie’s lawyers, said it had argued that NHS England "had continued to flout key sections of the NHS Act which require them to ‘make arrangements’ to consult or inform patients about the 'development and consideration' of decisions about or changes to primary care where they affect health services they might use".

Mr Justice Popplewell issued a ruling on the papers on 21 November. There was no hearing.

Leigh Day said the judge had declared that NHS England “has acted unlawfully by reason of its failure to make arrangements for the involvement of patients in primary care commissioning decisions as required by the National Health Service Act 2006”.

Richard Stein, a partner at the firm, said the declaration “confirms that NHS England will be taking decisions about dealing with GP practices and the sector every day which are in fact unlawful until they put proper arrangements in place as they are required by law.

“It is shocking that the body responsible nationally for producing guidance for other bodies to carry out these obligations haven’t done so themselves.”