CAMERON IN NHS EMAIL SCANDAL
He lobbied for medics’ personal data at height of Covid first wave
DAVID Cameron asked for access to the personal data of NHS staff at the height of the Covid outbreak last year, according to an email.
The former prime minister said a payment scheme run by Greensill Capital, which employed him as an adviser, would “help all NHS employees’ welfare, morale and wellbeing”.
He sent an email last April to Matthew Gould, head of the health service’s digital arm NHSX, revealing he had “an ask”.
Cameron added that a Greensill app called Earnd, which the firm wanted health staff to take up, would be “much slicker if it can obtain access to employee data in ESR [Electronic Staff Record]”.
He also said: “I think some help from you would go a long way.”
Earnd was set up to pay staff daily advances on their salaries, and Cameron told Gould that Health Secretary Matt Hancock was “extremely positive” about the plan.
ESR, a human resources and payroll database system, reportedly holds information on 1.4million NHS workers.
The email, seen by the Sunday Times, added: “Greensill have recently launched a digital solution [Earnd] which helps with one of your key priorities: helping all NHS employees’ welfare, morale, and wellbeing.
“This is an app that allows NHS employees to draw their salary earned, not yet paid, in real time using a simple app.”
Granting Greensill access to data would speed up the process, he said. He signed off the email to his former colleague:
“Once this is all over, it would be great to see you again? Maybe for lunch? Let’s stay in touch!” Gould replied: “We will certainly look into the ESR question.” Earnd entered into a contract with ESR to supply software that would access personal details of NHS staff to allow claims for early payment to be verified, the newspaper said. The revelations pile fresh pressure on the former PM over his relationship with Greensill boss Lex Greensill, who was brought into the Government during Cameron’s premiership. A spokesman for Cameron said: “These discussions were about the mechanics to ensure Earnd was delivered for NHS workers in a smooth and efficient way.” NHSX told the Sunday Times: “Greensill was one of many fintech firms which approached NHSX to discuss their products, as part of our ‘innovation surgery’, but we did not enter into any contract or partnership with them.” NHS England said “experts scrutinised [Greensill’s] proposals but decided not to go along with them”. The Greensill affair could trigger an overhaul of lobbying rules. Seven probes are under way or are planned. Shadow Cabinet Office minister Rachel Reeves said: “What we’ve seen this week is that Tory sleaze is back and that it is bigger than ever.” Finance firm Greensill went into administration last month.