Health Bill

Part of the debate – in a Public Bill Committee at 4:30 pm on 10 January 2006.

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Photo of Steve Webb Steve Webb Shadow Secretary of State for Health 4:30, 10 January 2006

I want to give the Minister a brief opportunity to place on the record certain assurances regarding the ophthalmic services covered by this clause, which I understand have been given by the Minister of State, Department of Health, the hon. Member for Doncaster, Central (Ms Winterton), who is not with us today. Those assurances were about what the contracts cover, and they are headed in a briefing which Committee members may have seen from the Association of British Dispensing Opticians, the Association of Optometrists and the Federation of Ophthalmic and Dispensing Opticians.

I am sure that the Minister is familiar with the meeting that took place between her colleague and that group on 27 October, subsequent to which a letter was written on 8 November by a Mr. Derek Busby, Ophthalmic Services, Department of Health. Sometimes, where assurances are given by officials to professional bodies on behalf of the Government, it is worth ensuring that they are placed on the official record, so that they have greater weight, as it were. The gist of it was that, under clause 35, the new general ophthalmic services contracts will cover three things; essential, additional and enhanced services.

To ensure that my understanding, and indeed that of the professional bodies, is correct, can the Minister confirm, first, that there are essential services that all PCTs—and anyone holding a GOS contract—have to provide? The example given was of sight tests for eligible NHS patients. Secondly, can she confirm that there will be additional services that all PCTs, but not all contractors will have to provide? The PCT must ensure that someone is providing those services, but not all contractors will have to do so. Thirdly, might there be enhanced services? The professional bodies are recommending that those should, again, be covered within the contractual framework. Particular PCTs might judge that those are needed in their area.

Mr. Busby says, of what I have just described,

''This provides a framework for future service development . . . building on the success of the current GOS system . . . ensuring that PCTs have a duty to make sight tests available to meet the needs of their eligible populations on a similar basis to the GOS now''.

I would be grateful if the Minister confirmed that the assurances given to the professional bodies are also her understanding. To quote from one further sentence by Mr. Busby,

''the Bill enables the Secretary of State to define''— those things that I have just talked about, but it then says:

''(in substance, although these terms are not in the Bill)''.

One is always wary when an official writes to a professional body, saying ''This is what the Bill means, but we don't use those words in the Bill.''

Can the Minister clarify whether these are informal equivalents of what is actually in the Bill, or are there   reasons why that language was not used in the Bill and it was not felt necessary to specify that there? Clearly, the professional bodies have been reassured by that letter. I hope that the Minister can reiterate those reassurances and clarify how those things arose.