IT system could save NHS £1.14bn

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It calculated that the National Programme for IT could save the NHS £1.14 billion by 2014 based solely on the data from one in five trusts which had implemented parts of the system by March last year.

And the Government insisted it was not way behind on most of the programme, despite figures showing far less has been spent on core contracts than previously predicted.

Suppliers only get paid once they deliver but, by March last year, they had been paid just £1.29 billion despite official estimates in 2004 that this figure would be £2.82 billion.

Overall, the predicted spend was £4.5 billion by March 2007 but only £2.4 billion has been spent.

Experts behind the system insisted this did not mean the whole programme was way behind, with Richard Jeavons, director of the service implementation team saying "many parts of the programme have been bang on time".

In June 2006, the National Audit Office (NAO) criticised the fact some elements of the system - such as electronic patient records - were two years behind schedule.

It said the online Choose and Book system was also a year off schedule.

The IT programme involves four main projects: the Choose and Book system for booking hospital appointments; a centralised electronic medical record system for 50 million patients; electronic prescriptions; and fast network links between NHS organisations.

It is expected to link more than 30,000 GPs in England to almost 300 hospitals.