PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
NHS Trusts: Subsidiary Companies (27 January 2020)

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the oral contribution of the Minister for Health on 9 January 2020, Official Report, column 728, which NHS trusts have employed more staff from the local employment market since forming a wholly-owned subsidiary.

Asked by:
Karin Smyth (Labour)

The Department wrote out to the finance directors of all National Health Service providers in September 2017 reminding them of their responsibilities around tax and advising that tax avoidance arrangements should not be entered into under any circumstances. We would expect all NHS providers to follow this guidance when considering any new arrangements or different ways of working.

The Department does not hold information on the decisions taken locally by NHS trusts and wholly owned subsidiary companies regarding the reward packages they offer to staff.

Staff who are compulsorily transferred from an NHS organisation to a wholly owned subsidiary retain their employment terms and conditions, in accordance with Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006, and access to the NHS Pension Scheme, in accordance with HM Treasury’s New Fair Deal guidance.

NHS trusts with wholly owned subsidiaries can choose to offer terms and conditional of service that are different to those on national terms for new starters. Trusts can also apply for access to the NHS Pension Scheme for new starters.

As part of its subsidiary review process, NHS England and NHS Improvement considers businesses cases from hospital trusts at the planning stage only and does not hold any data with regard to the future performance of wholly owned subsidiaries.

NHS England and NHS Improvement carried out a formal consultation on the Addendum to the transactions guidance published in November 2018. It does not intend to carry out a further consultation as part of the planned update to the Addendum to the transactions guidance, but has been engaging with the Department, NHS Providers, provider trusts, trade unions and internal subject matter experts as part of the planned update.

NHS England and NHS Improvement plans to publish an updated Addendum to the transactions guidance in spring 2020.

Answered by:
Edward Argar (Conservative)
3 February 2020