Clause 9 - Public Involvement and Consultation
Health and Social Care Bill
5:30 pm
Mr Desmond Swayne (New Forest West, Conservative)
Clause 9 places a duty to consult and involve persons for whom services are provided on health authorities, primary care trusts and NHS trusts. Our amendment would include special health authorities.
We have to put the case for the inclusion of special health authorities, but I rather hoped that the Minister would persuade me why they should not be included. They provide services to consumers, as set out in the clause. I notice that line 31 of page 7 states that people may be involved ``directly or through representatives'', which strikes me as entirely appropriate to our amendment, given the nature of special health authorities and the people that they serve. It strikes me that the clause was almost designed to accommodate them through representatives.
I look to the Minister to either accept the amendment or tell us why special health authorities should be excluded from the provisions.