Health and care sector latest developments

Ministers drop plan to scrap investigations body

The government has U-turned on its plan to abolish an independent health service investigations body after opposition in the House of Lords.

Ministers told peers on Wednesday that they would be dropping proposals in the Health Bill to merge the Health Services Safety Investigations Body (HSSIB) into the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

It followed concern that clinicians would be less willing to speak candidly to HSSIB investigators, who work under a legally protected ‘safe space’ and a ‘no blame’ approach, if it became part of a regulator. Several parliamentarians have criticised the proposal, including the all-party parliamentary group for patient safety.

The letter which set out the news to Peers says the government is still committed to the 2025 review by NHS England chair Penny Dash, which called for cuts to the number of bodies involved in quality oversight. 

The NHS Alliance have been lobbying parliamentarians on the bill to ensure the investigation function of the HSSIB should be clearly ringfenced, with separate leadership, staffing, resources, information governance and appropriate legal protections from the CQC.

NHS accidentally deletes thousands of patients from waiting lists

The day after the announcement of their survival, the Health Services Safety Investigations Body (HSSIB) has published an investigation that found that there had been at least 2,000 cases of patients ‘dropping off’ waiting lists since 2018. 

HSSIB said the NHS waiting list system posed an “immediate patient safety risk” and that the technology used “was not designed to manage the current volume of referrals.” 

The NHS e-Referral Service (e-RS) is used by GPs to refer patients to hospitals and creates digital lists of those waiting for appointments. These referrals are automatically removed from the lists when a patient is booked in for an appointment, or when 180 days have passed with no action. This was introduced to reduce the risk of the system being overwhelmed and affecting its performance.

However, HSSIB said its use “creates a hazard” and puts people at risk of missed or delayed care

Surge in complaints about children’s care and refusal to refer

Health Service Journal analysis shows that complaints about paediatric care and GPs refusing to make referrals to specialist services have hit a record high.

Total complaints rose from 256,777 in 2024/25 to 305,264 last year, with a range of drivers suggested, including that the rapid rise in AI-generated complaint letters could explain some of the increase – although clinicians cautioned further evidence was needed to substantiate this.

The rise in paediatric complaints was the highest for at least ten years, analysis of the official statistics published by NHS Digital suggests, with complaints rising from 2,265 to 3,193 year on year.

Complaints about GPs refusing to refer patients to other services have also increased substantially – rising by 53 per cent, 699 to 1,071, year on year.

However, the data also shows a fall in the proportion of fully upheld complaints – which dropped from 25 per cent in 2024-25 to 21.9 per cent in 2025/26.

Cold mortality monitoring report, England: winter 2025 to 2026

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has published their cold mortality monitoring report. 

Findings from the report show that 2,200 deaths were associated with cold weather across five cold weather episodes. This was lower than the estimated 2,788 cold-associated deaths recorded across three cold weather episodes during winter 2024 to 2025. The most severe episode, a nine-day period in early January, was associated with an estimated 1,563 cold-associated deaths.

The north-west of England experienced the highest mortality rate, with 52 cold-associated deaths per million population, followed by the East Midlands and Yorkshire and The Humber.

Shamonda virus detected in human for first time in France

A man in France has become the first human known to have contracted Shamonda virus, with investigations under way to explore whether it contributed to his death.

Shamonda virus is a type of bunyavirus and is spread by bites from infected midges in animals such as cattle, sheep and goats. It can cause diarrhoea, lack of appetite and a decline in milk yield, ‘as well as abortions and congenital abnormalities in newborn calves, lambs and kids’.

Professor Tom Solomon, the director of the pandemic institute at the University of Liverpool, said the risk to the general public appeared to be very low. “Shamonda virus has been circulating in animals, particularly cattle, but also sheep, goats, horses and alpacas, for many years, yet this is the first recognised human infection,” he said. “This suggests that transmission to humans is extremely unusual.”