Clause 6
Health Bill [Lords]
6:30 pm
Stephen O'Brien (Shadow Minister, Health; Eddisbury, Conservative)
The clause states:
“The Secretary of State must publish a report every 3 years on how the NHS Constitution has affected patients, staff, carers and members of the public, since the last report was produced under this subsection.”
Were the amendments to be made, the clause would require the Secretary of State to report every year on the delivery of the pledges in the NHS constitution, and that the first report must be published not later than 31 March 2010, or, under proposed subsection (1A), not later than 31 January 2010. The amendments are designed to strengthen the review of the NHS constitution.
Amendment 116 takes issue with the concept of a pledge in the constitution, which is rather weakly indicated by the word “pledge” in brackets. How effective would the US constitution be if it stated, “We the people establish this constitution for the United States of America (pledge)?” Surely a constitution is something one either does or does not do. What place do pledges have? I hope that the Minister will be able to give us the benefit of the thinking that lies behind that, because “pledge” in this context is a relatively weak word, although in other contexts it is not.
It seems fitting that the Secretary of State should have to report every year on the delivery of the pledges, which would be achieved by amendments 117 and 118, which propose that the date for the first report should by 31 January, one year after the constitution was signed with great flourish in Downing street by the Prime Minister before it appeared in the Bill, and indeed before consideration by either House of Parliament.
Amendment 14 seeks to have the first review undertaken and published on or before 31 March 2010 rather than 5 July 2012. Clearly, that is designed to make real what is contained in the Bill and to ensure that there is public accountability in advance of the general election. That date has been chosen to ensure that the matter is not shuffled off until after a general election and that the accountability that is envisaged under the Bill is produced in time for the public to have their say in the general election, which we all know must be no later than June 2010.