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An Act to make further provision in relation to the National Health Service, the testing of sight and instruction in matters relating to health and welfare; to amend the Medicines Act 1968 and the Medicines Act 1971 and to empower the Secretary of State to make regulations about HIV testing kits and services.
[15th November 1988]
Be it enacted by the Queen’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
(1) The Secretary of State may by order made by statutory instrument provide that on a day specified in the order all the property, rights and liabilities to which the General Practice Finance Corporation (“the Corporation”) was entitled or subject immediately before that date or all such property, rights and liabilities other than property, rights or liabilities specified in the order, shall become by virtue of the order property, rights and liabilities of a company nominated for the purposes of this section by the Secretary of State (in this Act referred to as “the successor company”).
(2) The transfer may be on such terms (including terms as to the payment of money to the Secretary of State) as the Secretary of State thinks fit.
(3) The Secretary of State shall have power, with the consent of the Treasury, to acquire, hold and dispose of stocks, shares or other securities of the successor company or rights to subscribe for any such securities.
(4) The Secretary of State, with the consent of the Treasury, may use—
(a) sums received by him under subsection (2) above; and
(b) dividends or other sums received by him in right of, or on the disposal of, any securities or rights acquired under this section,
for discharging liabilities of the Corporation or the successor company.
(5) Shares issued to the Secretary of State in connection with the vesting of property, rights and liabilities in the successor company by virtue of subsection (1) above shall be issued as fully paid and treated for the purposes of the [1985 c. 6.] Companies Act 1985 as if they had been fully paid up by virtue of the payment to the successor company of their nominal value in cash.
(6) The Secretary of State may by order made by statutory instrument not later than the day on which an order is made under subsection (1) above provide that such provisions of the memorandum or articles of association of the successor company as may be specified shall not be alterable without his approval.
(7) Nothing in subsection (6) above shall be construed as limiting the operation of section 14 of the [1978 c. 30.] Interpretation Act 1978 (implied power to amend) so far as that section relates to the revocation of an order under subsection (6) above.
(8) The Secretary of State may by order made by statutory instrument provide that provisions of the memorandum or articles of association of the successor company which have been specified in an order under subsection (6) above shall be alterable without his approval.
(9) On such day as the Secretary of State may by order made by statutory instrument appoint the Corporation shall cease to exist.
(10) An order under subsection (9) above may make such provision as the Secretary of State thinks fit with regard to the disposal of the Corporation’s assets and the discharge of its liabilities.
(11) A statutory instrument containing an order under this section shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
(12) Sums required by the Secretary of State for the purposes of this section shall be paid out of money provided by Parliament.
(13) Subject to subsection (4) above, there shall be paid into the Consolidated Fund—
(a) any sums received by the Secretary of State under subsection (2) above; and
(b) any dividends or other sums received by him in right of, or on the disposal of, any securities or rights acquired under this section.
(14) Schedule 1 to this Act shall have effect for the purpose of supplementing the provisions of this section.
(1) The Secretary of State may by regulations made by statutory instrument with the consent of the Treasury make provision—
(a) for guaranteeing the whole or any part of the liability incurred by any person for payments in respect of a loan made to that person in connection with premises to be wholly or partly used by that person for the provision of general medical services under Part II of the [1977 c. 49.] National Health Service Act 1977 or Part II of the [1978 c. 29.] National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978; and
(b) for indemnifying a person who has made such a loan to such a person against the whole or any part of any loss arising in connection with the loan.
(2) Sums required to fulfil a guarantee or indemnity under this section shall be paid out of money provided by Parliament.
(3) A statutory instrument containing regulations under this section shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
(4) Any power conferred on the Secretary of State by the articles of association of the successor company shall be exercisable in the national interest notwithstanding any rule of law and the provisions of any enactment.
(1) The following section shall be inserted after section 2 of the [1966 c. 8.] National Health Service Act 1966—
The Corporation shall have power—
(a) for valuable consideration to assign the benefit of a contract for a loan or to extinguish, or vary, by agreement an obligation under a contract for a loan;
(b) to sell any interest in land;
(c) to facilitate and arrange loans to persons such as are mentioned in section 2(1) above from persons other than the Corporation;
(d) to make loans jointly with other persons;
(e) to make arrangements with other persons for the purchase jointly with the Corporation of premises or other land such as are mentioned in section 2(1) above; and
(f) to arrange for persons other than the Corporation to purchase such land or premises and grant leases of such land or premises to persons such as are mentioned in that subsection.”
(2) The Secretary of State may by direction—
(a) prohibit the making by the Corporation after a date specified in the direction of offers to lend money;
(b) prohibit the making of loans by the Corporation after a date so specified; and
(c) make any prohibition contained in a direction under this subsection subject to such exceptions as may be specified in it.
(3) In section 6(3) of the National Health Service Act 1966 (Corporation’s borrowing powers) for “£150 million” there shall be substituted “£160 million”.
(1) At any time when the successor company is wholly owned by the Crown the Treasury may guarantee, in such manner and on such conditions as they think fit, the redemption or repayment of any stock issued or temporary loan raised by the successor company and the payment of interest on any such stock or loan.
(2) Immediately after any guarantee is given under this section the Treasury shall lay a statement of the guarantee before each House of Parliament, and where any sum is issued for fulfilling such a guarantee or a guarantee such as is mentioned in subsection (6) below the Treasury shall, as soon as possible after the end of each financial year beginning with that in which the sum is issued and ending with that in which all liability in respect of the principal of the sum and in respect of interest thereon is finally discharged, lay before each House of Parliament a statement relating to that sum.
(3) Any sums required by the Treasury for fulfilling any guarantee given or treated as given under this section shall be charged on and issued out of the Consolidated Fund.
(4) If any sums are issued in fulfilment of any guarantee given or treated as given under this section, the successor company shall make to the Treasury, at such times and in such manner as the Treasury may from time to time direct, payments of such amounts as the Treasury may direct in or towards repayment of the sums so issued and payments of interest on what is outstanding for the time being in respect of sums so issued at such rates as the Treasury may direct.
(5) Any sums received by the Treasury under this section shall be paid into the Consolidated Fund.
(6) Any guarantee given by the Treasury under section 7 of the [1966 c. 8.] National Health Service Act 1966 with respect to a liability of the Corporation which becomes a liability of the successor company by virtue of section 1 above shall be treated as if it were a guarantee given under this section.
(7) Any guarantee given or treated as given under this section shall be extinguished when the successor company ceases to be wholly owned by the Crown.
(8) The successor company shall be regarded for the purposes of this Act as wholly owned by the Crown at any time when each of the issued shares in the company and the whole of any stock issued by it is held by, or by a nominee of, the Secretary of State.
(1) For the purposes of any statutory accounts of the successor company—
(a) the vesting effected by virtue of section 1 above—
(i) shall be taken to have been a vesting of all the property, rights and liabilities (other than any excepted property, rights and liabilities) to which the Corporation was entitled or subject immediately before the end of the last complete financial year ending before the vesting effected by virtue of section 1 above; and
(ii) shall be taken to have been effected immediately after the end of that year; and
(b) the value of any asset and the amount of any liability of the Corporation taken to have been vested in the successor company by virtue of paragraph (a) above shall be taken to be the value or (as the case may be) the amount assigned to that asset or liability for the purposes of the corresponding statement of accounts prepared by the Corporation in respect of that year in pursuance of section 8 of the [1966 c. 8.] National Health Service Act 1966.
(2) For the purposes of any statutory accounts of the successor company the amount to be included in respect of any item shall be determined as if anything done by the Corporation (whether by way of acquiring, revaluing or disposing of any asset or incurring, revaluing or discharging any liability, or by carrying any amount to any provision or reserve, or otherwise) had been done by the successor company.
Accordingly (but without prejudice to the generality of the preceding provision) the amount to be included from time to time in any reserves of the successor company as representing its accumulated realised profits shall be determined as if any profits realised and retained by the Corporation had been realised and retained by the successor company.
(3) References in this section to the statutory accounts of the successor company are references to any accounts prepared by the successor company for the purposes of any provision of the [1985 c. 6.] Companies Act 1985; and in this section “complete financial year” means a financial year ending with 31st March.
(1) Subject to subsection (2) below, if on the day specified under section 1(1) above the successor company is a company limited by shares which is wholly owned by the Crown, it shall be treated for all purposes of corporation tax as if it were the same person as the Corporation.
(2) The successor company shall not by virtue of subsection (1) above be regarded as a body falling within section 272(5) of the [1970 c. 10.] Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1970 (bodies established for carrying on industries or undertakings under national ownership or control).
(1) In order to make more income available for improving the health service (as defined in the [1977 c. 49.] National Health Service Act 1977 or the [1978 c. 29.] National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978), the Secretary of State shall have the powers specified in subsection (2) below; but for the avoidance of doubt it is hereby declared that nothing in this section authorises him or any body to which he gives directions under subsection (3) below to disregard any enactment or rule of law or to override any person’s contractual or proprietary rights.
(2) The powers mentioned in subsection (1) above are powers—
(a) to acquire, produce, manufacture and supply goods;
(b) to acquire land by agreement and manage and deal with land;
(c) to supply accommodation to any person;
(d) to supply services to any person and to provide new services;
(e) to provide instruction for any person;
(f) to develop and exploit ideas and exploit intellectual property;
(g) to do anything whatsoever which appears to him to be calculated to facilitate, or to be conducive or incidental to, the exercise of any power conferred by this subsection; and
(h) to make such charge as he considers appropriate for anything that he does in the exercise of any such power and to calculate any such charge on any basis that he considers to be the appropriate commercial basis.
(3) The Secretary of State may give directions (having regard to the existing work of voluntary bodies)—
(i) for the exercise of any of those powers by any body constituted under the [1977 c. 49.] National Health Service Act 1977 or the [1978 c. 29.] National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978; and
(ii) with respect to the manner in which any such body is to exercise any such power;
and it shall be the duty of the body in question to comply with the directions.
(4) The directions may provide that any power to which they relate shall be exercisable subject to any limitations specified in the directions.
(5) The directions may be varied or revoked by subsequent directions.
(6) The Secretary of State shall exercise the powers specified in subsection (2)(c) and (d) above only if and to the extent that he is satisfied that anything which he proposes to do in the exercise of those powers does not fall within section 65 of the National Health Service Act 1977 or section 57 of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978.
(7) The Secretary of State shall exercise the powers specified in subsection (2)(f) above only after consulting (to the extent that it appears to him to be practical) any person who appears to him to have an interest through his own previous research in the ideas or intellectual property in question as to whether he should exercise them and, if so, as to any financial arrangements.
(8) The Secretary of State shall exercise the powers specified in subsection (2) above only if and to the extent that he is satisfied that anything which he proposes to do—
(a) will not to a significant extent interfere with the performance by him of any duty imposed on him by the National Health Service Act 1977 or the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978; and
(b) will not to a significant extent operate to the disadvantage of persons seeking or afforded admission or access to accommodation or services at hospitals vested in the Secretary of State for the purposes of his functions under either of those Acts (whether as resident or non-resident patients) otherwise than under section 65 of the National Health Service Act 1977 or section 57 of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978.
(9) In section 63 of the National Health Service Act 1977 and in section 55 of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978—
(a) in subsection (1), for the words from “to such extent” to “those charges” there shall be substituted the words “for patients to such extent as he may determine, and may recover such charges as he may determine in respect of such accommodation and calculate them on any basis that he considers to be the appropriate commercial basis”; and
(b) subsection (2) shall be omitted.
(10) The following section shall be substituted for sections 65 and 66 of the [1977 c. 49.] National Health Service Act 1977—
(1) If the Secretary of State is satisfied, in the case of a health service hospital or group of such hospitals, that it is reasonable to do so, he may authorise accommodation and services at the hospital or hospitals in question to be made available, to such extent as he may determine, for patients who give undertakings (or for whom undertakings are given) to pay, in respect of the accommodation and services made available, such charges as the Secretary of State may determine and may make and recover such charges as he may determine in respect of such accommodation and services and calculate them on any basis that he considers to be the appropriate commercial basis; but he shall do so only if and to the extent that he is satisfied that to do so—
(a) will not to a significant extent interfere with the performance by him of any duty imposed on him by this Act to provide accommodation or services of any kind; and
(b) will not to a significant extent operate to the disadvantage of persons seeking or afforded admission or access to accommodation or services at health service hospitals (whether as resident or non-resident patients) otherwise than under this section.
(2) The Secretary of State may allow accommodation and services to which an authorisation under subsection (1) above relates to be made available in connection with treatment, in pursuance of arrangements made by a medical practitioner or dental practitioner serving (whether in an honorary or paid capacity) on the staff of a health service hospital for the treatment of private patients of that practitioner.
(3) The Secretary of State shall revoke an authorisation under this section only if and to the extent that he is satisfied that sufficient accommodation and facilities for the private practice of medicine and dentistry are otherwise reasonably available (whether privately or at health service hospitals) to meet the reasonable demand for them in the area or areas served by the hospital or hospitals in question.”
(11) The following section shall be substituted for sections 57 and 58 of the [1978 c. 29.] National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978—
(1) If the Secretary of State is satisfied, in the case of a health service hospital, that it is reasonable to do so, he may authorise accommodation and services at the hospital in question to be made available, to such extent as he may determine, for patients who give undertakings (or for whom undertakings are given) to pay, in respect of the accommodation and services made available, such charges as the Secretary of State may determine and may make and recover such charges as he may determine in respect of such accommodation and services and calculate them on any basis that he considers to be the appropriate commercial basis; but he shall do so only if and to the extent that he is satisfied that to do so—
(a) will not to a significant extent interfere with the performance by him of any duty imposed on him by this Act to provide accommodation or services of any kind; and
(b) will not to a significant extent operate to the disadvantage of persons seeking or afforded admission or access to accommodation or services at health service hospitals (whether as resident or non-resident patients) otherwise than under this section.
(2) The Secretary of State may allow accommodation and services to which an authorisation under subsection (1) above relates to be made available in connection with treatment, in pursuance of arrangements made by a medical practitioner or dental practitioner serving (whether in an honorary or paid capacity) on the staff of a health service hospital for the treatment of private patients of that practitioner.
(3) The Secretary of State shall revoke an authorisation under this section only if and to the extent that he is satisfied that sufficient accommodation and facilities for the private practice of medicine and dentistry are otherwise reasonably available (whether privately or at health service hospitals) to meet the reasonable demand for them in the area served by the hospital in question.”
(12) In section 121 of the [1977 c. 49.] National Health Service Act 1977 (charges in respect of non-residents) after the word “charges”, in the first place where it occurs, there shall be inserted the words “as the Secretary of State may determine”.
(13) In section 98 of the [1978 c. 29.] National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 (which makes corresponding provision for Scotland) for the words “may be prescribed”, in the second place where they occur, there shall be substituted the words “the Secretary of State may determine”.
(14) The following paragraph shall be added at the end of the sections mentioned in subsections (12) and (13) above—
“The Secretary of State may calculate charges under this section on any basis that he considers to be the appropriate commercial basis.”.
(1) The Secretary of State shall by regulations made by statutory instrument provide for the removal—
(a) from any list maintained under section 29 of the [1977 c. 49.] National Health Service Act 1977 or section 19 of the [1978 c. 29.] National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978;
(b) from any list maintained under section 36 of the National Health Service Act 1977 or section 25(2) of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978,
of the name of any person who has attained an age specified in the regulations.
(2) If at the time when his application is determined an applicant for inclusion in a list of any description mentioned in paragraph (a) or (b) of subsection (1) above is over the age specified in relation to a list of that description in regulations under that subsection, his application shall be refused.
(3) The Secretary of State may pay—
(a) to persons whose names are removed by virtue of regulations under subsection (1) above from a list such as is mentioned in paragraph (b) of that subsection; or
(b) to any description of such persons,
such amounts as he may determine in respect of any loss that he accepts that they have suffered as a consequence of the coming into force of regulations under subsection (1) above.
(4) Before making such a determination the Secretary of State shall consult such organisations as appear to the Secretary of State to be representative of persons providing general dental services.
(5) Regulations under this section may make such incidental or supplementary provision as the Secretary of State considers appropriate.
(6) A statutory instrument containing any such regulations shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
(7) Payments of amounts under this section shall be made out of money provided by Parliament.
Regulation 76 of the [S.I. 1980 No. 362.] National Health Service (Superannuation) Regulations 1980 and Regulation 75 of the [S.I. 1980 No. 1177.] National Health Service (Superannuation) (Scotland) Regulations 1980 (under which further employment as a practitioner between the ages of 65 and 70 years in the case of a person who became entitled to a pension as a practitioner on or after attaining the age of 65 years is to be disregarded for the purpose of determining whether his pension is to be reduced) are hereby revoked.
(1) In section 5 of the [1977 c. 49.] National Health Service Act 1977—
(a) in paragraph (a) (services the Secretary of State is required to provide for school pupils) of subsection (1) the words “and dental”, in both places where they occur, shall cease to have effect; and
(b) the following subsections shall be inserted after that subsection—
“(1A) It is also the Secretary of State’s duty to provide, to such extent as he considers necessary to meet all reasonable requirements—
(a) for the dental inspection of pupils in attendance at schools maintained by local education authorities or at grant-maintained schools;
(b) for the dental treatment of such pupils; and
(c) for the education of such pupils in dental health.
(1B) Schedule 1 to this Act shall have effect.”
(2) In section 39 of the [1978 c. 29.] National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 (medical and dental inspection, supervision and treatment of pupils and young persons)—
(a) in subsection (1)—
(i) the words “and dental”, in both places where they occur, shall cease to have effect; and
(ii) after the word “supervision” there shall be inserted the words “and treatment”;
(b) for subsection (2) there shall be substituted the following subsection—
“(2) It is also the Secretary of State’s duty to provide, to such extent as he considers necessary to meet all reasonable requirements—
(a) for the dental inspection of such pupils and young persons as are mentioned in subsection (1);
(b) for their dental treatment; and
(c) for their education in dental health.”;
(c) in subsection (3), for the words “and dental treatment made available under” there shall be substituted the words “treatment made available under subsection (1) and dental treatment made available for the purposes of”; and
(d) in subsection (4)—
(i) the words “and dental” shall cease to have effect; and
(ii) for the words “subsections (1) and (2)” there shall be substituted the words “subsection (1) and for the dental inspection, treatment and education described in subsection (2)”.
Health and Medicines Act 1988