“The way this has been handled has created a real sense of chaos,” UNISON head of health Helga Pile Helga talks to Adrian Chiles on BBC Radio 5 Live about the impact on staff of the government's announcement that NHS England is to be abolished.

‘Having now made the decision to abolish NHS England, & while we still wait for the publication of the NHS 10 year plan, the government must be clear why this significant structural change at this time is necessary, & how it fits into their wider plans.' kingsfund.org.uk/insight-and-an…

Jon Restell Agree changes are needed. Too many layers and lack of clarity about roles and responsibilities. We all saw the impact of previous changes. But there definitely needs to be a well thought through plan not slash and burn. What’s the end game? The vision. What happens where?

Clearly the news yesterday regarding the abolition of NHS England is huge, but some of the commentary on this has lacked empathy regarding the impact this will have on thousands of people across the country who have worked tirelessly over many years to deliver for patients🧵

“It is a political triumph and an operational disaster.” The end of NHS England “long predates” Starmer's government, but the speed of its shutdown will cause chaos, says Alastair McLellan. Alastair McLellan | @BillMorgan82 | @AyeshaHazarika

Well said Jon Restell 👏

“Ministers, of course, have the democratic right to determine the size of the state but you cannot make cuts of this scale without consequences." - FDA National Officer Matt Barrow theguardian.com/politics/2025/…

Today I heard from an @miphealth member who organises the school nursing service in their local schools. Has skin in the game. But they work for a local Integrated Care Board, told this week to cut 50% by December. What happens to that service if they are made unemployed?

So the obvious question is what functions will be cut so hard they cease to function effectively? 30,000 jobs could go in Labour’s radical overhaul of NHS theguardian.com/politics/2025/…

“At some point as a country, we have to stop trying to design the ‘perfect’ health care system and instead try to maximise the opportunities of the one we have.” Siva Anandaciva considers the implications of abolishing NHS England. kingsfund.org.uk/insight-and-an…

The kind of efficiencies the government is talking about in terms of AI won’t happen in this Parliament. As I said to Matt Frei, the public sector will have to move more slowly than the private sector, because if it gets it wrong, then that has real world impacts on people.

Thanks to managers galvanising teams and resources to deliver on government priorities. So why did the government decide this week to massively destabilise NHS management?

The government's promised to reform the NHS, but “reform” is one of the trickiest words in the political lexicon. It "usually just means cuts, and when done in a hurry there’s a risk of unintended consequences." Helen Salisbury on the end of NHS England bmj.com/content/388/bm…

Speaking on BBC's World Tonight, I urged people to not get too excited by the scrapping of NHS England. It could easily prove a distraction to wider reforms. I hope the SoS will show he has concrete plans for how he is going to do this properly when he speaks before Health and Social Care Committee.

Just off call with 200 MiP members at NHS England. From people at risk of losing jobs, calm, thoughtful questions about future of functions and how change will be done. Heartsinking to think of the time & effort now needed to create answers over the next 2 years.

BBC News: Strike off after hospitals abandon outsource plans unsn.uk/4pZx3Va