Clause 56
Health and Social Care Bill
3:15 pm
Stephen O'Brien (Shadow Minister, Health; Eddisbury, Conservative)
The amendment seeks to enable the CQC to inspect independent health care, a point touched on earlier by others on other amendments. Amendments Nos. 40 and 41 amend clause 67(4), which limits regulations under that clause to health and social care schemes paid for out of public funds only. The amendments seek to broaden it to all health and social care schemes and the clause makes provision for the commission to make arrangements with Ministers of the Crown to inspect health and social care facilities within their remit. The obvious example is health care provided through the defence budget. That is a useful example to have in mind. On amendment No. 39, we need to ask why the Bill limits the inspection to NHS bodies. On amendments Nos. 40 and 41, I understand that that is in regard to other Ministers of the Crown, It might be helpful if the Minister could outline which ones. I assume that they are the Defence and Foreign Ministers. Why is it limited to health care paid for out of public funds? Presumably, that has something to do with departmental budgets or allocations. That is the sum of the purpose of the amendments.