|
| |
| |
17 Financial powers | |
(1) An NHS foundation trust may borrow money for the purposes of or in | |
connection with its functions. | |
(2) But the total amount of the trust’s borrowing is subject to the limit imposed by | |
its authorisation. | 5 |
(3) The limit must be reviewed annually by the regulator. | |
(4) An NHS foundation trust may invest money (other than money held by it as | |
trustee) for the purposes of or in connection with its functions. | |
(5) The investment may include investment by— | |
(a) forming, or participating in forming, bodies corporate, | 10 |
(b) otherwise acquiring membership of bodies corporate. | |
(6) An NHS foundation trust may give financial assistance (whether by way of | |
loan, guarantee or otherwise) to any person for the purposes of or in | |
connection with its functions. | |
18 General powers | 15 |
(1) An NHS foundation trust may do anything which appears to it to be necessary | |
or desirable for the purposes of or in connection with its functions. | |
(2) In particular it may— | |
(a) acquire and dispose of property, | |
(b) enter into contracts, | 20 |
(c) accept gifts of property (including property to be held on trust for the | |
purposes of the NHS foundation trust or for any purposes relating to | |
the health service), | |
(d) employ staff. | |
(3) Any power of the trust to pay remuneration and allowances to any person | 25 |
includes power to make arrangements for providing, or securing the provision | |
of, pensions or gratuities (including those payable by way of compensation for | |
loss of employment or loss or reduction of pay). | |
19 Information | |
(1) An authorisation— | 30 |
(a) must require an NHS foundation trust to disclose such information as | |
the Secretary of State specifies to the regulator, | |
(b) may require an NHS foundation trust to disclose other information to | |
the regulator. | |
(2) The regulator may require any other health service body to disclose any | 35 |
information to him which he requires for the purposes of his functions. | |
20 Entry and inspection of premises | |
An authorisation may require an NHS foundation trust to allow the regulator | |
to enter and inspect premises owned or controlled by the trust. | |
| |
| |
|
| |
| |
21 Fees | |
An authorisation may require an NHS foundation trust to pay a reasonable | |
annual fee to the regulator. | |
22 Trust funds and trustees | |
(1) The Secretary of State may by order provide for the appointment of trustees for | 5 |
an NHS foundation trust to hold property on trust— | |
(a) for the purposes of the NHS foundation trust, or | |
(b) for any purposes relating to the health service. | |
(2) The order may— | |
(a) make provision as to the persons by whom trustees are to be appointed | 10 |
and generally as to the method of their appointment, | |
(b) make any appointment subject to such conditions as may be specified | |
in the order (including conditions requiring the consent of the Secretary | |
of State), | |
(c) make provision as to the number of trustees to be appointed, including | 15 |
provision under which that number may from time to time be | |
determined by the Secretary of State after consultation with such | |
persons as he considers appropriate, | |
(d) make provision with respect to the term of office of any trustee and his | |
removal from office. | 20 |
(3) Where trustees have been appointed for an NHS foundation trust under this | |
section, the Secretary of State may by order provide for the transfer of any trust | |
property from the NHS foundation trust to the trustees. | |
(4) Where an NHS trust for which trustees have been appointed under section 11 | |
of the 1990 Act is given an authorisation, the order appointing the trustees is to | 25 |
have effect as an order under this section. | |
Failure | |
23 Failing NHS foundation trusts | |
(1) If the regulator is satisfied— | |
(a) that an NHS foundation trust is contravening, or failing to comply | 30 |
with, any term of its authorisation or any requirement imposed on it | |
under any enactment and that the contravention or failure is | |
significant, or | |
(b) that an NHS foundation trust has contravened, or failed to comply | |
with, any such term or requirement and is likely to do so again and that | 35 |
the contravention or failure was significant, | |
he may by a notice to the trust exercise any one or more of the powers in | |
subsections (3) and (4). | |
(2) He may also by a notice to the trust exercise any one or more of those powers | |
if he is satisfied that the trust has contravened or failed to comply with a | 40 |
previous notice. | |
(3) The regulator may require the trust, the directors or the board of governors to | |
do, or not to do, specified things or things of a specified description within a | |
specified period. | |
| |
| |
|
| |
| |
(4) The regulator may remove any or all of the directors or members of the board | |
of governors and appoint interim directors or members of the board. | |
(5) The regulator’s power to remove a director, or member of the board of | |
governors, of the trust includes power to suspend him from office, or to | |
disqualify him from holding office, as a director or member of the board of | 5 |
governors of the trust for a specified period. | |
24 Voluntary arrangements | |
(1) If the regulator is satisfied that it is necessary or desirable to do so, he may by | |
a notice to an NHS foundation trust require the directors— | |
(a) to take steps to obtain a moratorium, or | 10 |
(b) to make a proposal for a voluntary arrangement. | |
(2) An order may provide for Part 1 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (c. 45) (company | |
voluntary arrangements) to apply with modifications in relation to NHS | |
foundation trusts; and the references in this Part to a moratorium or voluntary | |
arrangement are to a moratorium under section 1A, or a voluntary | 15 |
arrangement under Part 1, of that Act as modified by the order. | |
25 Dissolution etc. | |
(1) The powers conferred by this section are exercisable where— | |
(a) an NHS foundation trust contravenes or fails to comply with a notice | |
under section 23 or 24 or the trust’s compliance with a notice under | 20 |
section 24 does not result in the implementation of a voluntary | |
arrangement, and | |
(b) the regulator considers that further exercise of any of the powers | |
conferred by those sections would not be likely to secure the provision | |
of the goods and services which the authorisation requires the trust to | 25 |
provide. | |
(2) Before the powers conferred by this section are exercised, the regulator must | |
consult prescribed persons about prescribed matters. | |
“Prescribed” means prescribed by an order. | |
(3) An order may transfer, or provide for the transfer of, any property or liabilities | 30 |
of the trust to— | |
(a) another NHS foundation trust, | |
(b) a Primary Care Trust, | |
(c) an NHS trust, | |
(d) the Secretary of State. | 35 |
(4) Schedule 3 (which provides for the transfer of employees) has effect. | |
(5) An order may provide for the dissolution of the trust. | |
(6) An order may apply any provision of Part 4 of the Insolvency Act 1986 | |
(winding up of companies), including any related provision of that Act, with | |
modifications. | 40 |
(7) Where the regulator refuses to give an authorisation to a public benefit | |
corporation— | |
(a) the powers conferred by this section are also exercisable, | |
| |
| |
|
| |
| |
(b) references in this section and Schedule 3 to an NHS foundation trust are | |
to be read as references to the corporation. | |
26 Sections 23 to 25: supplementary | |
(1) This section applies for the purposes of sections 23 to 25. | |
(2) An order means an order made by the Secretary of State. | 5 |
(3) The regulator must send a copy of any notice given under section 23 to the | |
registrar of companies. | |
(4) The regulator must give notice of any dissolution of the trust to the registrar of | |
companies. | |
(5) The modifications of the Insolvency Act 1986 (c. 45) that may be made by an | 10 |
order include (for example)— | |
(a) provision for securing that the goods and services which the trust is | |
required by the authorisation to provide continue to be provided | |
(whether by the trust or another), | |
(b) provision for securing the protection of property needed for the | 15 |
purposes of those goods and services. | |
Co-operation | |
27 Co-operation between NHS bodies | |
In section 26 of the Health Act 1999 (c. 8) (co-operation between NHS bodies), | |
for “and NHS trusts” there is substituted “, NHS trusts and NHS foundation | 20 |
trusts”. | |
Patient and public involvement | |
28 Public involvement and consultation | |
In section 11(2) of the Health and Social Care Act 2001 (c. 15) (public | |
involvement and consultation), at the end there is inserted— | 25 |
“(d) NHS foundation trusts”. | |
29 Patients’ Forums | |
(1) The National Health Service Reform and Health Care Professions Act 2002 | |
(c. 17) is amended as follows. | |
(2) In section 16 (additional functions of PCT Patients’ Forums), in subsection (4), | 30 |
after paragraph (c) there is inserted— | |
“(ca) NHS foundation trusts which provide services to patients in the | |
area of the Primary Care Trust,”. | |
(3) In section 17 (entry and inspection of premises), in subsection (1), after | |
paragraph (f) there is inserted— | 35 |
“(fa) NHS foundation trusts,”. | |
| |
| |
|
| |
| |
(4) In section 18 (annual reports), in subsection (2), at the end there is inserted— | |
“(e) where the report includes provision which relates to any NHS | |
foundation trust, the Independent Regulator of NHS | |
Foundation Trusts”. | |
30 Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health | 5 |
In section 20(12) of the National Health Service Reform and Health Care | |
Professions Act 2002 (c. 17) (Commission for Patient and Public Involvement | |
in Health), in the definition of “health service bodies”, for “and NHS trusts” | |
there is substituted “, NHS trusts and NHS foundation trusts”. | |
Miscellaneous | 10 |
31 Taxation | |
(1) In section 519A of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 (c. 1) (taxation | |
of health service bodies), in subsection (2), after paragraph (b) there is | |
inserted— | |
“(bb) an NHS foundation trust”. | 15 |
(2) Section 61(3) of the 1990 Act (health service bodies: stamp duty) applies to an | |
NHS foundation trust as it applies to an NHS trust. | |
(3) In section 41 of the Value Added Tax Act 1994 (c. 23) (application to the | |
Crown), in subsection (7), after “1978” there is inserted “an NHS foundation | |
trust”. | 20 |
32 Other amendments relating to NHS foundation trusts | |
Schedule 4 (which makes amendments relating to NHS foundation trusts) has | |
effect. | |
33 Offence | |
(1) A person may not vote at an election for the board of governors of an NHS | 25 |
foundation trust unless, within the specified period, he has made a declaration | |
in the specified form that he is a member of the public constituency or (as the | |
case may be) staff constituency. | |
(2) A person may not stand for election to the board unless, within the specified | |
period, he has made a declaration in the specified form that he is a member of | 30 |
the trust. | |
(3) A person elected to the board may not vote at a general meeting of the board | |
unless, within the specified period, he has made a declaration in the specified | |
form that he is a member of the trust. | |
(4) Specified means specified for the purpose in the trust’s constitution. | 35 |
(5) A person is guilty of an offence if he— | |
(a) makes a declaration under this section which he knows to be false in a | |
material particular, or | |
(b) recklessly makes such a declaration which is false in a material | |
particular. | 40 |
| |
| |
|
| |
| |
(6) A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable on summary | |
conviction to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale. | |
34 General duty of NHS foundation trusts | |
An NHS foundation trust must exercise its functions effectively, efficiently and | |
economically. | 5 |
Supplementary | |
35 Interpretation of Part 1 | |
(1) In this Part— | |
“the 1990 Act” means the National Health Service and Community Care | |
Act 1990 (c. 19), | 10 |
“authorisation” means an authorisation under section 6, | |
“health service body” means a Strategic Health Authority, a Special | |
Health Authority, an NHS trust, an NHS foundation trust or a Primary | |
Care Trust, | |
“the registrar of companies” means the registrar or other officer | 15 |
performing under the Companies Act 1985 (c. 6) the duty of | |
registration of companies in England and Wales, | |
“regulations” means regulations made by the Secretary of State. | |
(2) Other expressions used in this Part and in the 1977 Act have the same meaning | |
in this Part as in that Act. | 20 |
(3) Any references in this Part, in relation to property held on trust, to the purposes | |
of an NHS foundation trust are to the general or any specific purposes of the | |
NHS foundation trust (including the purposes of any specific hospital at or | |
from which services are provided by the trust). | |
(4) Any references in this Part to goods and services are to be interpreted in | 25 |
accordance with section 14(5). | |
Part 2 | |
Standards | |
Chapter 1 | |
Regulatory bodies | 30 |
36 The Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection | |
(1) There is to be a body corporate known as the Commission for Healthcare Audit | |
and Inspection (in this Part referred to as the CHAI). | |
(2) Schedule 5 (which makes further provision about the CHAI) has effect. | |
37 The Commission for Social Care Inspection | 35 |
(1) There is to be a body corporate known as the Commission for Social Care | |
Inspection (in this Part referred to as the CSCI). | |
| |
| |
|
| |
| |
(2) Schedule 6 (which makes further provision about the CSCI) has effect. | |
38 Transfer of property etc to CHAI and CSCI | |
Schedule 7 (which makes provision for the transfer of property, rights and | |
liabilities to the CHAI and the CSCI) has effect. | |
39 Abolition of former regulatory bodies | 5 |
(1) The Commission for Health Improvement is abolished. | |
(2) The National Care Standards Commission is abolished. | |
Chapter 2 | |
NHS health care: introductory | |
40 Quality in health care | 10 |
(1) It is the duty of each NHS body to put and keep in place arrangements for the | |
purpose of monitoring and improving the quality of health care provided by | |
and for that body. | |
(2) In this Part “health care” means— | |
(a) services provided to individuals for or in connection with the | 15 |
prevention, diagnosis or treatment of illness; and | |
(b) the promotion and protection of public health. | |
(3) In subsection (2)(a), “illness” has the meaning given by section 128(1) of the | |
1977 Act. | |
41 Standards set by Secretary of State | 20 |
(1) The Secretary of State may prepare and publish statements of standards in | |
relation to the provision of health care by and for English NHS bodies and | |
cross-border SHAs. | |
(2) The Secretary of State must keep the standards under review and may publish | |
amended statements whenever he considers it appropriate. | 25 |
(3) The Secretary of State must consult such persons as he considers appropriate— | |
(a) before publishing a statement under this section; | |
(b) before publishing an amended statement under this section which in | |
the opinion of the Secretary of State effects a substantial change in the | |
standards. | 30 |
(4) The standards set out in statements under this section are to be taken into | |
account by every English NHS body and cross-border SHA in discharging its | |
duty under section 40. | |
42 Standards set by Assembly | |
(1) The Assembly may prepare and publish statements of standards in relation to | 35 |
the provision of health care by and for Welsh NHS bodies. | |
| |
| |
|
