AQW 30085/22-27

Mr Nick Mathison
Alliance Party
Strangford

Tabled Date: 02/09/2025
Answered On Date: 17/09/2025
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Health to detail the timeline following the closure of the consultation on the final report of the Regional Review of Neurology services.

Answer:

The public consultation on the final report of my Department’s Regional Review of Neurology Services ran from 7 May 2025 until 6 August 2025.

Now that the consultation has closed my officials are currently reviewing the responses to the consultation which will inform a final implementation plan. I expect this work to be completed in the coming months.

Subsequent to this, it is intended that a Neurology Delivery Team will be established to lead on implementation. As the Review was tasked with identifying the optimum configuration for services for the next 10-15 years, the implementation period will extend over many years with some recommendations able to be implemented quicker than others. In this context, the Review report has identified short, medium and long-term actions along with associated timescales.

It is clear that full implementation of the Review’s recommendations will require considerable additional investment at a time when my Department is facing significant in year budgetary pressures. It may be the case, therefore, that the pace of implementation will have to be adjusted in line with the funding available. I will however carefully consider funding to implement the Neurology Review in the context of future budget settlements and competing priorities.