Watchdog launches investigation into NHSE claims of FDP effectiveness

The UK statistics watchdog has confirmed it is “reviewing” NHS England’s use of figures to promote the federated data platform, HSJ  can reveal.

The Office for Statistics Regulation has told HSJ   it is “reviewing the issues raised” by NHSE’s recent admission that widely used figures do not prove the effectiveness of the FDP.

The claim the national data sharing platform has contributed to the service carrying out more than 110,000 additional operations has been repeatedly used in official statements defending the use of the FDP. For example, it was recently quoted by health minister Preet Kaur Gill under questioning from the health and social care select committee.

However, on its web page outlining the methodology used to calculate FDP benefits, NHSE has added a caveat stating that it cannot “draw conclusions about cause and effect as other variables have not been controlled for”.

The methodology used to calculate the 110,000 figure involved comparing the number of patients treated after adopting the FDP against “an expected baseline derived from pre-adoption activity”.

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Source: HSJ, 3 July 2026