Clause 60 - Commission to assist other bodies with appointments
Health Bill
6:30 pm
Stephen Williams (Shadow Minister, Health; Bristol West, Liberal Democrat)
The title of the clause is ''Commission to assist other bodies with appointments'', and something occurred to me while we were cantering through. We all subscribe, I am sure, to patient involvement in the NHS. I regularly receive from various bodies the minutes of the two patients forums that scrutinise the work of the two primary care trusts that cover my constituency as well as the two acute trusts. Often those meetings discuss important matters and are seen as valid consultation of the community, but they are sometimes thinly attended. Clearly, the chair of the organisation is a lay person and has important role in the community. It is not clear how such chairs are selected or screened. Is it envisaged that the new NHS Appointments Commission will have a role in making sure that the chairs of the various patients forums that undertake such important work have gone through a process? Perhaps the Minister will write to me. Will the patients forums receive advice to make sure that they recruit their chairs openly so that anyone from the community can apply and take part?