Public bodies, including the NHS, have a duty to be politically impartial.  As an NHS body, it is important therefore that NICE’s conduct and procedures during the general election period do not call the Institute’s impartiality into question.

In order to avoid providing a focus for political debate or detract attention from the general election campaign, NICE will not publish any guidance document, either in draft or final form, during the general election campaign. Consultations that have already started before the election was called will continue as planned.

This draft guidance was due to be released for consultation on 27 April 2010. However, given the likely timing of an election, the consultation will now be delayed until 17 May (and end on 15 June). This also means that the final guidance will now be published in November instead of October 2010.

Factual information will continue to be made available to members of the public, parliamentary candidates, political organisations and journalists in the usual way, in accordance with the Code of Practice on Openness in the NHS.