The government is 'about to conclude' negotiations on community pharmacy funding, the health secretary has said.

Speaking in parliament yesterday, Wes Streeting said pharmacy minister Stephen Kinnock was 'in the very final stages of work with pharmacists to stabilise the community pharmacy sector', which he said 'is vital for the NHS’s future as a neighbourhood service'.

He added that having 'successfully concluded' negotiations on the GP contract, the government was 'about to conclude community pharmacy, too'.

The health secretary also said that NHS England (NHSE) medical director Professor Sir Stephen Powis would be succeeded by 'one medical director for primary care and one for secondary care'.

He said this would 'underpin' the government's commitment to shifting care from hospital to the community.

'I hope that we are beginning to turn what I think has been a deep anger, frustration and anxiety among primary care leaders about the state of the system as it is and a pessimism about its future into increasing amounts of quiet optimism and hope,' he added.

Mr Streeting made the comments as part of a statement to parliament on the future of NHS England (NHSE).

It came as government announced that NHSE will be scrapped and brought back into the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), while integrated care boards (ICBs) have been asked to halve their staff costs.

Also this week, Mr Kinnock said that an 'interim' version of the economic analysis of community pharmacy had been shared with ministers and has 'informed the offer that Community Pharmacy England is currently being consulted on'.

And he said that the final version was 'nearing completion'.