Clause 21 - Fees
Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Bill
6:15 pm
Mr Simon Burns (West Chelmsford, Conservative)
I beg to move amendment No. 22, in
clause 21, page 8, line 34, at end add
'subject to the regulator only having the power to set fees at a level that recovers his annual running costs apportioned across the total number of NHS foundation trusts.'.
I shall be brief as this is a very straightforward amendment. It would add a proviso that the fee should be set at a level that restricts it to the recovery of the annual running costs across the board. I hope that the Minister will agree with the philosophy behind the amendment, even if he feels that it is unnecessary to put it in the Bill. There have been complaints over a number of years that levels of fees imposed—usually inspection fees—have increased significantly above the rate of inflation. Although no one would disagree that the cost of the work done should be recoverable, to set a fee above that level, which might be construed as having an element of profit in it, would be unwelcome and unnecessary. I hope that the Minister can at least give the Committee a commitment that he will expect the fee levels to be restricted to the costs of the work carried out, and not an opportunity for a future Chancellor of the Exchequer to use this as a system of generating additional funding.