Terms of Reference: scrutiny of Public Health England

The Health Committee is today announcing arrangements for its first accountability hearing with Public Health England.

The Committee proposes to take evidence as follows:

• Public Health England: Tuesday 19 November 2013

There is no formal call for evidence for this hearing, but the Committee would be pleased to receive written submissions on the work of Public Health England in advance of the hearing.

Further details of the session will be announced in due course.

Written evidence must be submitted via the web portal and the deadline for submitting written evidence is midday on Thursday 7 November 2013 (please note that the portal will close shortly after the midday deadline).

As an executive agency of the Department of Health, Public Health England began operating on 1 April 2013. It formed as a result of reorganisation of the National Health Service in England as outlined in the Health and Social Care Act 2012. Its mission is to protect and improve the nation’s health and to address inequalities. On its website it lists as its responsibilities:

• making the public healthier by encouraging discussions, advising government and supporting action by local government, the NHS and other people and organisations
• supporting the public so they can protect and improve their own health
• protecting the nation’s health through the national health protection service, and preparing for public health emergencies
• sharing our information and expertise with local authorities, industry and the NHS, to help them make improvements in the public’s health
• researching, collecting and analysing data to improve our understanding of health and come up with answers to public health problems
• reporting on improvements in the public’s health so everyone can understand the challenge and the next steps
• helping local authorities and the NHS to develop the public health system and its specialist workforce