The measures were revealed in a Board report that acknowledged that ‘without immediate and significant action the system is at risk of ending the year with a deficit in excess of £350m'.

The ICB was notified of the action in a letter by NHS England in December.

Intervention work has been led by Stephen Hay, former managing director of NHS Improvement and a team from Price Waterhouse Coopers following support from Simon Worthington and PA Consulting.

Kevin Lavery, chief executive of Lancashire and South Cumbria ICB, said: ‘The NHS in Lancashire and South Cumbria has been receiving additional support from NHS England as part of the investigation and intervention in recent months, and this is the next stage of intervention.

‘We welcome this support for our system and aim to learn from these experts so we can see opportunities we have not yet identified.

‘Partners across the region have been working extremely hard under difficult circumstances to deliver our plans while ensuring the right outcomes for patients, and we are grateful to all colleagues involved in supporting our system to become more efficient.

‘It is important that we recognise there is still more to be done and we remain hopeful that by continuing to work together and with additional national support we can help deliver our medium and long-term plans for a more sustainable system in the future.'