Clause 14
Health and Social Care Bill
6:15 pm
Stephen O'Brien (Shadow Minister, Health; Eddisbury, Conservative)
I am grateful for the intervention because the hon. Lady raises a very powerful and valid concern. We are often dealing with some pretty sensitive issues in relation to such matters. Clearly, the amendment states that the grounds have to be “documented”, which imposes an obligation to get things down in writing. That is often one of the first disciplines that is jettisoned by those who might have something to hide. The amendment also suggests that the grounds have to be “reasonable”—and that must be the right test for taking action—before they can be laid before the board of the commission. So, disclosure will be governed by where such requirements relate to board payments.
The point at which reasonable grounds are being considered will be an internal board matter. Patently, if a board makes decisions, all those matters are ultimately publicly discloseable—that is the very nature of what they are about. Therefore, given the sensitivity, I am sure that some protections are already in place. However, I need to be careful not to take the position of the Minister because this is his Bill and, ultimately, it has to be his drafting. The amendment makes clear that the process of getting the information documented, the test of reasonableness and the fact that it is presented to the board would mean that the controls that normally apply so that sensitivities within information can be contained before they are published would equally apply to the disclosure of board papers.