Written questions

NHS: Negligence

Commons · Question 115703 · Tabled 24 Feb 2026 · Department of Health and Social Care · Official record

Answered 2 Mar 2026

Question

Asked by Josh Fenton-Glynn

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment the Department has made of the potential impact of the high ratio of legal costs to damages in low value clinical negligence claims, as highlighted by the NAO, and what steps it is

Answer

Answered by Zubir Ahmed, 2 Mar 2026

The rising costs of clinical negligence claims against the National Health Service in England are of great concern to the Government. Costs have more than doubled in the last ten years and are forecast to continue rising, putting further pressure on NHS f...