The National Wealth Service

One in seven doctors appointed to the new clinical commissioning boards, which will have responsibility for spending £60bn of NHS money every year, could have a significant financial conflict of interest, an investigation has found. Research by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism revealed that, of the first 52 consortiums established under the Coalition's NHS reforms, 19 could present concerns about the independence of their boards. The study raises the prospect that GPs could benefit directly from private companies working in the NHS. The Department of Health has announced new rules to address perceived conflicts of interests within the boards before the boards start taking responsibility for commissioning in 2013. However the research highlights the inherent problem of giving GPs responsibility for spending the bulk of NHS resources when they are themselves increasingly involved in providing many of those services. Unlike most professionals working in the NHS, GPs are effectively self-employed – and so can benefit personally by entering into arrangements with private companies