The government’s 40 “new hospitals” has dominated headlines - and decisions - over NHS capital funding in recent years, but this week HSJ revealed dozens of trusts are still waiting for money promised by the previous big capital programme.

We discuss why over £1bn is yet to be received for capital schemes announced in 2017 and 2018 and what impact this has had on services.

Also this week, an update on the latest chapter in The Christie Foundation Trust’s whistleblowing saga, after the publication of a CQC report that downgraded the trust's treasured ‘outstanding’ rating. 

This week bureau chief Ben Clover stands in for Annabelle Collins and introduces two important stories, one that got national coverage and one that HSJ broke. Deputy editor Dave West takes us through the strange delay of some community diagnostic centres, which some suspect is politically-motivated as the government looks to what it can deliver before an election next year. Correspondent Mimi Launder then takes us behind the announcements on the primary care recovery plan. This received a lot of national attention earlier this week but HSJ obtained internal documentation showing just how patchy the roll-out is of some of the technology the government is counting on.

On this week’s episode Alastair reveals why NHS England’s elective recovery director Jim Mackey is replacing David Sloman as national operations lead later this year.

We also discuss why Tim Ferris was the right man for the national transformation job, but arrived at the wrong time.

Also this week: what’s next for the Agenda for Change pay deal and concerns raised about the poor care experienced by eating disorder patients in acute hospitals.

NHS leaders are being told they must prioritise balancing the books above all else, with some trusts even being asked to keep staff numbers down to save money. 

We discuss the tricky relationship between ‘productivity’ and recruitment and the impact an intensified focus on finance could have on other important priorities.

A legal battle has erupted between a hospital trust and bank-backed PFI company over fire safety and payment refusals. We discuss why the case has potentially wider implications for other NHS trusts. 

Also this week, we find out why NHS England had to apologise to staff impacted by problems during its restructure, and hear about the latest twist in an ICS dogged by troubling leadership issues.

Featuring Nick Carding, Ben Clover and Dave West.

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A consortium of British companies have been knocked out of the hotly contested competition to win a £480m contract to provide the NHS with a new data platform. 

We discuss who is left in the running, including a number of American tech firms with little or no experience of working with the NHS. 

Also this week - an update on how the NHS has coped with the junior doctors’ strikes this week, and a quick look at the latest performance data, which for the first time has revealed the extent of the 12 hours waits in A&E.

Patricia Hewitt’s much-anticipated review of ICS autonomy was published this week. We discuss its recommendations, the politics behind it, and what meaningful, lasting impact it could have.

With Alastair McLellan, James Illman and Annabelle Collins.

NHS Blood and Transplant has been embroiled in allegations of racism that stretch back several years.

On this episode Annabelle is joined by Lawrence Dunhill who has been reporting on the agency’s failure to address these systemic problems. 

The story spans secret recordings, a bitter employment tribunal and high profile resignations, with the organisation seriously struggling with blood stocks and staff shortages.

This week we discuss a quirk in last week’s pay deal between health unions and the government, which could see staff at the top of Agenda for Change paid more than senior managers.

We also dig into the “shameful” planned cuts to social care budgets to the tune of £550m, as revealed by HSJ last week.

This week we analyse the Spring Budget and what it means for the NHS, in particular the pensions tax overhaul.

We cover why Jeremy Hunt has gone for such an expensive fix and what impact it will have on the health service and its ability to retain experienced doctors.

Also this week, our insights into three days of junior doctors’ strikes and more on the ongoing BMA ‘rate card’ controversy.