New regulations will reduce some forms of outsourcing in the NHS, but there are significant gaps which a UNISON campaign is aiming to fix.
A reduction in the competitive tendering for NHS contracts is expected to follow the introduction of the new procurement regulations – the Provider Selection Regime (PSR) which came into force in January 2024.
Not covered by the new rules though are contracts for facilities, such as catering, cleaning, administration, and IT.
The risk of further contracting out in NHS remains while existing outsourcing contracts keep some of the lowest-paid workers tied to poor rates of pay, earning “less than those whose jobs are in-house”
This is one of the stated reasons Unison’s campaign – Bringing Services Home, launched last July – is focused on preventing outsourcing and bringing services that are currently outsourced back in-house.
Full story in The Lowdown, 6 February 2023
