Part 2Powers in relation to health bodies
Chapter 1Powers in relation to failing NHS bodies in England
De-authorisation of NHS foundation trusts
15De-authorisation of NHS foundation trusts
1
In the National Health Service Act 2006 (c. 41) after section 52 insert—
52AApplication of sections 52B to 52E
1
a
an NHS foundation trust authorised under section 35 on an application under section 33;
b
an NHS foundation trust established under section 56 to which subsection (2) applies.
2
This subsection applies to an NHS foundation trust if—
a
at least one of the trusts on whose application the NHS foundation trust was established was an NHS foundation trust within subsection (1)(a), or was an NHS trust all or most of whose hospitals, establishments and facilities were in England, or
b
the NHS foundation trust is the result of a succession of mergers under section 56, any of which involved an NHS foundation trust within subsection (1)(a) or an NHS trust all or most of whose hospitals, establishments and facilities were in England.
52BDe-authorisation: regulator’s notice
1
The regulator may give the Secretary of State a notice under this section if it is satisfied that—
a
an NHS foundation trust to which this section applies is contravening or failing to comply with, or has contravened or failed to comply with, any term of its authorisation or any requirement imposed on it under any enactment, and
b
the seriousness of the contravention or failure, or, if there has been more than one, of any of them taken together, is such that it would justify the Secretary of State making an order under section 52D.
2
The notice must be in writing.
3
With the notice the regulator must give the Secretary of State a report stating the reasons why it is satisfied as mentioned in subsection (1).
4
Before giving a notice under this section, the regulator must consult first the Secretary of State (unless the notice follows a request by the Secretary of State under section 52E) and then—
a
the trust,
b
any Strategic Health Authority in whose area the trust has hospitals, establishments or facilities, and
c
any other person to which the trust provides goods or services under this Act and which the regulator considers it appropriate to consult.
52CGrounds for de-authorisation notice
1
In determining under section 52B(1)(b) whether the making of an order would be justified, and in determining whether to give a notice under that section, the regulator must consider these matters (among others)—
a
the health and safety of patients;
b
the quality of the provision by the trust of goods and services;
c
the financial position of the trust;
d
the way it is being run.
2
The regulator must publish guidance as to the matters (including those mentioned in subsection (1)) that it proposes to consider in making those determinations.
3
Before publishing any guidance under this section, including any revised guidance, the regulator must consult—
a
the Secretary of State,
b
each NHS foundation trust to which this section applies,
c
each NHS trust intending to make an application to become an NHS foundation trust, and
d
such other persons as the regulator considers appropriate.
52DDe-authorisation
1
If the regulator gives notice under section 52B in relation to a trust, the Secretary of State must make an order for it to cease to be an NHS foundation trust.
2
An order made under subsection (1) must specify the date when it is to take effect, which must be within the period of 5 working days beginning with the day on which it is made.
3
On an order under subsection (1) taking effect in relation to a body, it ceases to be an NHS foundation trust and a public benefit corporation and becomes a National Health Service trust.
4
The order must specify, in relation to the trust, the matters mentioned in paragraph 5(1)(a) to (c) of Schedule 4 and, where the trust has a significant teaching commitment, the matters mentioned in paragraph 5(1)(d).
5
The order may provide for any provision under subsection (4) specifying the number of executive directors and non-executive directors to take effect at the end of a period specified in the order.
6
Schedule 8A makes further provision about trusts in respect of which an order is made under subsection (1).
7
If it appears to the Secretary of State to be necessary in order to comply with provision made under subsection (4), or made by regulations under paragraph 4 of Schedule 4, the Secretary of State may by order—
a
terminate the office of any executive or non-executive director of the trust;
b
appoint a person to be an executive or non-executive director of the trust.
8
9
In this section “working day” means any day which is not Saturday, Sunday, Christmas Day, Good Friday or a day which is a bank holiday in England and Wales under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971.
52ESecretary of State’s request
1
2
A request under this section must—
a
specify the NHS foundation trust to which it relates, and
b
state the grounds relied on by the Secretary of State.
3
The Secretary of State must lay before Parliament any request under this section.
4
5
The required period is—
a
14 days beginning with the day after the regulator receives the request, or
b
any longer period specified in the request.
6
The Secretary of State may by order extend or further extend the required period.
2
Schedule 2 (which inserts Schedule 8A to the National Health Service Act 2006, which makes provision about de-authorised NHS foundation trusts) has effect.
Trust special administrators
16Trust special administrators: NHS trusts and NHS foundation trusts
After section 65 of the National Health Service Act 2006 (c. 41) insert—
Chapter 5ATrust special administrators: NHS trusts and NHS foundation trusts
Application
65AApplication
1
This Chapter applies to—
a
an NHS trust all or most of whose hospitals, establishments and facilities are in England;
b
an NHS foundation trust authorised under section 35 on an application under section 33;
c
an NHS foundation trust established under section 56 to which subsection (2) applies.
2
This subsection applies to an NHS foundation trust if—
a
Appointment
65BAppointment of trust special administrator
1
The Secretary of State may make an order authorising the appointment of a trust special administrator to exercise the functions of the chairman and directors of an NHS trust to which this Chapter applies.
2
An order may be made under subsection (1) only if the Secretary of State considers it appropriate in the interests of the health service.
3
The order must specify the date when the appointment is to take effect, which must be within the period of 5 working days beginning with the day on which the order is made.
4
Before making the order the Secretary of State must consult—
a
the trust,
b
any Strategic Health Authority in whose area the trust has hospitals, establishments or facilities, and
c
any other person to which the trust provides goods or services under this Act and which the Secretary of State considers it appropriate to consult.
5
The Secretary of State must lay before Parliament (with the statutory instrument containing the order) a report stating the reasons for making the order.
6
If an order is made under subsection (1), the Secretary of State must—
a
appoint a person as the trust special administrator with effect from the day specified in the order, and
b
publish the name of the person appointed.
7
A person appointed as a trust special administrator holds and vacates office in accordance with the terms of the appointment.
8
The Secretary of State may pay remuneration and expenses to a trust special administrator.
65CSuspension of directors
1
When the appointment of a trust special administrator takes effect, the trust’s chairman and executive and non-executive directors are suspended from office.
2
Subsection (1) does not affect the employment of the executive directors or their membership of any committee or sub-committee of the trust.
De-authorisation of NHS foundation trusts
65DNHS foundation trusts: regulator’s notice
1
The regulator may give the Secretary of State a notice under this section if it is satisfied that—
a
an NHS foundation trust to which this Chapter applies is failing to comply with a notice under section 52, and
b
further exercise of the powers conferred by section 52 would not be likely to secure the provision of the goods and services which the trust’s authorisation requires it to provide.
2
The notice must be in writing.
3
With the notice the regulator must give the Secretary of State a report stating the reasons why it is satisfied as mentioned in subsection (1).
4
Before giving a notice under this section, the regulator must consult first the Secretary of State and then—
a
the trust,
b
any Strategic Health Authority in whose area the trust has hospitals, establishments or facilities, and
c
any other person to which the trust provides goods or services under this Act and which the regulator considers it appropriate to consult.
65ENHS foundation trusts: de-authorisation and appointment of trust special administrator
1
If the regulator gives notice under section 65D in relation to a trust, the Secretary of State must make an order for it to cease to be an NHS foundation trust.
2
An order made under subsection (1) must specify the date when it is to take effect, which must be within the period of 5 working days beginning with the day on which it is made.
3
4
On an order under subsection (1) taking effect in relation to a body, it ceases to be an NHS foundation trust and a public benefit corporation and becomes a National Health Service trust.
5
Schedule 8A makes further provision about trusts in respect of which an order is made under subsection (1).
6
7
8
Consultation and report
65FDraft report
1
Within the period of 45 working days beginning with the day on which a trust special administrator’s appointment takes effect, the administrator must provide to the Secretary of State and publish a draft report stating the action which the administrator recommends the Secretary of State should take in relation to the trust.
2
When preparing the draft report, the administrator must consult—
a
any Strategic Health Authority in whose area the trust has hospitals, establishments or facilities, and
b
any other person to which the trust provides goods or services under this Act and which the Secretary of State directs the administrator to consult.
3
After receiving the draft report, the Secretary of State must lay it before Parliament.
65GConsultation plan
1
At the same time as publishing a draft report under section 65F, a trust special administrator must publish a statement setting out the means by which the administrator will seek responses to the draft report.
2
The statement must specify a period of 30 working days within which the administrator seeks responses (the “consultation period”).
3
The first day of the consultation period must be within the period of 5 working days beginning with the day on which the draft report is published.
65HConsultation requirements
1
The following duties apply during the consultation period.
2
The trust special administrator must publish a notice stating that the administrator is seeking responses to the draft report and describing how people can give their responses.
3
A notice under subsection (2) must include details of how responses can be given in writing.
4
The trust special administrator must hold at least one meeting to seek responses from staff of the trust and from such persons as the trust special administrator may recognise as representing staff of the trust.
5
The trust special administrator must hold at least one other meeting to seek responses from any person who wishes to attend, after publishing notice of the date, time and place of the meeting.
6
7
The trust special administrator must request a written response from—
a
any Strategic Health Authority in whose area the trust has hospitals, establishments or facilities;
b
any other person to which the trust provides goods or services under this Act, if required by directions given by the Secretary of State;
c
any person within subsection (8), if required by directions given by the Secretary of State.
8
The persons within this subsection are—
a
an overview and scrutiny committee of any authority to which section 244 applies;
b
a committee of a local authority operating alternative arrangements under Part 2 of the Local Government Act 2000 which exercises functions corresponding to those of an overview and scrutiny committee under section 21(2)(f) of that Act;
c
a joint overview and scrutiny committee;
d
a committee established under section 247(1);
e
a person carrying on, in pursuance of arrangements made by any local authority under subsection (1) of section 221 of the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, activities specified in subsection (2) of that section (local involvement networks);
f
the member of Parliament for any constituency.
9
10
The Secretary of State may direct an administrator to—
a
request a written response from any person;
b
hold a meeting to seek a response from any person.
11
In subsection (4) “staff of the trust” means persons employed by the trust or otherwise working for the trust (whether as or on behalf of a contractor, as a volunteer or otherwise).
65IFinal report
1
Within the period of 15 working days beginning with the end of the consultation period, the trust special administrator must provide to the Secretary of State a final report stating the action which the administrator recommends that the Secretary of State should take in relation to the trust.
2
The administrator must attach to the final report a summary of all responses to the draft report which were received by the administrator in the period beginning with the publication of the draft report and ending with the last day of the consultation period.
3
After receiving the administrator’s final report, the Secretary of State must publish it and lay it before Parliament.
65JPower to extend time
1
This section applies to—
a
b
2
If the Secretary of State thinks it is not reasonable in the circumstances for the administrator to be required to carry out the duty within the specified period, the Secretary of State may by order extend the period.
3
4
If an order is made extending the period mentioned in subsection (1)(b) the trust special administrator must—
a
publish a notice stating the new date on which the period will expire, and
b
publish a statement setting out the means by which the administrator will seek responses to the draft report during the extended consultation period.
Action by the Secretary of State
65KSecretary of State’s decision
1
Within the period of 20 working days beginning with the day on which the Secretary of State receives a final report under section 65I, the Secretary of State must decide what action to take in relation to the trust.
2
The Secretary of State must as soon as reasonably practicable—
a
publish a notice of the decision and of the reasons for it;
b
lay a copy of the notice before Parliament.
65LTrusts coming out of administration
1
This section applies if the Secretary of State decides under section 65K not to dissolve the trust.
2
The Secretary of State must make an order specifying a date when the appointment of the trust special administrator and the suspension of the chairman and directors of the trust come to an end.
3
4
The Secretary of State must make an order specifying, in relation to the trust, the matters mentioned in paragraph 5(1)(a) to (c) of Schedule 4 and, where the trust has a significant teaching commitment, the matters mentioned in paragraph 5(1)(d).
5
If it appears to the Secretary of State to be necessary in order to comply with provision made under subsection (4), or made by regulations under paragraph 4 of Schedule 4, the Secretary of State may by order—
a
terminate the office of any executive or non-executive director of the trust;
b
appoint a person to be an executive or non-executive director of the trust.
Supplementary
65MReplacement of trust special administrator
1
If a trust special administrator ceases to hold office for any reason before the Secretary of State has made either an order under section 65L(2) or an order dissolving the trust, the Secretary of State must—
a
appoint another person as the trust special administrator, and
b
publish the name of the person appointed.
2
Where a person is appointed under subsection (1) in relation to a trust, anything done by or in relation to a previous trust special administrator has effect as if done by or in relation to that person, unless the Secretary of State directs otherwise.
65NGuidance
1
The Secretary of State must publish guidance for trust special administrators.
2
3
It must include guidance about the preparation of draft reports, as to—
a
persons to be consulted;
b
factors to be taken into account;
c
relevant publications.
65OInterpretation of this Chapter
In this Chapter—
17Trust special administrators: Primary Care Trusts
After section 65O of the National Health Service Act 2006 (c. 41) (inserted by section 16) insert—
Chapter 5BTrust special administrators: Primary Care Trusts
Appointment
65PAppointment of trust special administrator
1
The Secretary of State may give directions to a Primary Care Trust requiring the Primary Care Trust to appoint a trust special administrator to exercise on its behalf, to the extent, and subject to any conditions, specified in the directions, such provider functions of the Primary Care Trust as are specified in the directions.
2
Directions may be given under subsection (1) only if the Secretary of State considers it appropriate in the interests of the health service.
3
The directions must specify—
a
the date when the appointment is to take effect, which must be within the period of 5 working days beginning with the day on which the directions are given, and
b
the name of the person to be appointed.
4
Before giving directions under subsection (1) the Secretary of State must consult—
a
the Primary Care Trust,
b
any Strategic Health Authority whose area includes any part of the Primary Care Trust’s area, and
c
any other person to which the Primary Care Trust provides goods or services under this Act and which the Secretary of State considers it appropriate to consult.
5
The Secretary of State must lay before Parliament (with the instrument containing the directions) a report stating the reasons for giving the directions.
6
Where a person is appointed pursuant to directions under subsection (1), the Secretary of State must publish the name of the person appointed.
7
A person appointed as a trust special administrator holds and vacates office in accordance with the terms of the appointment.
8
Directions under subsection (1) may require the appointment to be on terms specified in the directions.
9
The Primary Care Trust may pay the trust special administrator remuneration and expenses in accordance with the terms of the appointment.
10
In this section “provider function” means—
a
any function of providing goods or services except to the extent that at the time of the appointment there are arrangements between the Primary Care Trust and another person or body under which the goods or services are, or are to be, provided by that person or body, and
b
any function that is not a function of providing goods or services but that may be exercised for the purposes of a function within paragraph (a).
65QDisplacement of functions
1
When the appointment of a trust special administrator takes effect, the relevant functions cease to be exercisable by any committee, sub-committee or officer of the Primary Care Trust by whom they were previously exercisable.
2
Subsection (1) does not affect the employment of any officer of the Primary Care Trust.
3
In this Chapter “relevant functions” means the functions of the Primary Care Trust exercisable by the trust special administrator.
Consultation and report
65RDraft report
1
Within the period of 45 working days beginning with the day on which a trust special administrator’s appointment takes effect, the administrator must provide to the Secretary of State and publish a draft report stating the action which the administrator recommends the Secretary of State should take in relation to the performance of the relevant functions.
2
When preparing the draft report, the administrator must consult—
a
any Strategic Health Authority whose area includes any part of the Primary Care Trust’s area, and
b
any other person to which the Primary Care Trust provides goods or services under this Act, if required by directions given by the Secretary of State.
3
After receiving the draft report, the Secretary of State must lay it before Parliament.
65SConsultation plan
1
At the same time as publishing a draft report under section 65R, a trust special administrator must publish a statement setting out the means by which the administrator will seek responses to the draft report.
2
The statement must specify a period of 30 working days within which the administrator seeks responses (the “consultation period”).
3
The first day of the consultation period must be within the period of 5 working days beginning with the day on which the draft report is published.
65TConsultation requirements
1
The following duties apply during the consultation period.
2
The trust special administrator must publish a notice stating that the administrator is seeking responses to the draft report and describing how people can give their responses.
3
A notice under subsection (2) must include details of how responses can be given in writing.
4
The trust special administrator must hold at least one meeting to seek responses from relevant staff and from such persons as the trust special administrator may recognise as representing relevant staff.
5
The trust special administrator must hold at least one other meeting to seek responses from any person who wishes to attend, after publishing notice of the date, time and place of the meeting.
6
7
The trust special administrator must request a written response from—
a
any Strategic Health Authority in whose area any part of the Primary Care Trust’s area falls;
b
any other person to which the Primary Care Trust provides goods or services under this Act, if required by directions given by the Secretary of State;
8
9
The Secretary of State may direct a trust special administrator to—
a
request a written response from any person;
b
hold a meeting to seek a response from any person.
10
In subsection (4) “relevant staff” means persons employed by the trust or otherwise working for the trust (whether as or on behalf of a contractor, as a volunteer or otherwise), wholly or partly in connection with the relevant functions.
65UFinal report
1
Within the period of 15 working days beginning with the end of the consultation period, the trust special administrator must provide to the Secretary of State a final report stating the action which the administrator recommends that the Secretary of State should take in relation to the performance of the relevant functions.
2
The administrator must attach to the final report a summary of all responses to the draft report which were received by the administrator in the period beginning with the publication of the draft report and ending with the last day of the consultation period.
3
After receiving the administrator’s final report, the Secretary of State must publish it and lay it before Parliament.
65VPower to extend time
1
This section applies to—
a
b
2
If the Secretary of State thinks it is not reasonable in the circumstances for the administrator to be required to carry out the duty within the specified period, the Secretary of State may by order extend the period.
3
4
If an order is made extending the period mentioned in subsection (1)(b) the trust special administrator must—
a
publish a notice stating the new date on which the period will expire, and
b
publish a statement setting out the means by which the administrator will seek responses to the draft report during the extended consultation period.
Action by the Secretary of State
65WSecretary of State’s decision
1
Within the period of 20 working days beginning with the day on which the Secretary of State receives a final report under section 65U, the Secretary of State must decide what action to take in relation to the performance of the relevant functions.
2
The Secretary of State must as soon as reasonably practicable—
a
publish a notice of the decision and of the reasons for it;
b
lay a copy of the notice before Parliament.
65XRemoval of a trust special administrator
The Secretary of State may at any time give directions to a Primary Care Trust and a trust special administrator who exercises functions on behalf of the Primary Care Trust, requiring that the appointment of the administrator should come to an end with effect from a specified day.
Supplementary
65YReplacement of trust special administrator
1
Where the Secretary of State has given directions under section 65P and, before the Secretary of State has published a decision under section 65W, the trust special administrator appointed under the directions (or whose appointment has effect as if made under the directions) ceases to hold office for any reason, the Secretary of State must—
a
appoint another person as the trust special administrator, and
b
publish the name of the person appointed.
2
An appointment under subsection (1) has effect as if made by the Primary Care Trust under the directions.
3
Where a person is appointed under subsection (1) in relation to a Primary Care Trust, anything done by or in relation to a previous trust special administrator has effect as if done by or in relation to that person, unless the Secretary of State directs otherwise.
65ZSecretary of State’s directions to trust special administrator
The Secretary of State may give directions to a trust special administrator about the exercise of functions under or by virtue of this Chapter.
65Z1Guidance
1
The Secretary of State must publish guidance for trust special administrators.
2
3
It must include guidance in relation to the preparation of draft reports, as to—
a
persons to be consulted;
b
factors to be taken into account;
c
relevant publications.
65Z2Directions
Directions under the following provisions of this Chapter must be laid before Parliament after they are given—
b
section 65X;
c
section 65Z.
65Z3Interpretation of this Chapter
In this Chapter—
“relevant functions” has the meaning given in section 65Q(3);
“trust special administrator” means a person appointed under directions under section 65P(1) or under section 65Y(1)(a);
“working day” means any day which is not Saturday, Sunday, Christmas Day, Good Friday or a day which is a bank holiday in England and Wales under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971.
Consequential amendments
18Trust special administrators: consequential amendments
1
The National Health Service Act 2006 (c. 41) is amended as follows.
2
Section 53 (voluntary arrangements for NHS foundation trusts) is amended as follows.
3
In subsection (1), after “NHS foundation trust” insert “to which this section applies”.
4
In subsection (2), after “NHS foundation trusts” insert “to which this section applies”.
5
After subsection (4) insert—
4A
This section applies to an NHS foundation trust to which sections 52B to 52E and Chapter 5A do not apply.
6
In section 54 (dissolution etc. of NHS foundation trusts), in subsection (1), after “NHS foundation trust” insert “to which section 53 applies”.
7
In section 242 (public involvement and consultation), at the end insert—
8
In section 272 (orders, regulations, rules and directions)—
a
in subsection (4), for “and (6)” substitute “, (6) and (6A)”;
b
9
10
11
In Schedule 9 (NHS foundation trusts: transfer of staff), in paragraph 1 after “NHS foundation trust” insert “to which section 53 applies”.
12
In section 206(1) of the National Health Service (Wales) Act 2006 (c. 42) (interpretation), in the definition of “NHS trust”, at the end insert “(including a body that becomes a National Health Service trust by virtue of an order made under section 52D(1) or 65E(1) of that Act)”.
Chapter 2Suspension
19NHS and other health appointments: suspension
Schedule 3 (which amends enactments to provide for powers of suspension in relation to chairs, vice-chairs and other members of NHS bodies and other bodies concerned with health) has effect.