Some large hospitals will have to close as the NHS gears itself towards delivering better health outcomes and value for money, a conference has heard.

Steve Field, immediate past chairman of the Royal College of General Practitioners, said that London had too many hospitals and that health ministers would have to “grasp” the need for closures.

Robert Naylor, chief executive of University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, also called for a “radical” approach to reorganisation, saying, “There are too many hospitals in big cities.”

Gareth Goodier, chief executive of Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said that the NHS was facing one of the most difficult periods in its history. He told the conference: “Some tough decisions will have to be made.”

The event, entitled “Maximising …