NHS (Charitable Trusts Etc) Bill
Debate between Wendy Morton and Alistair Burt(9 years ago)
Public Bill CommitteesRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Wendy Morton (Aldridge-Brownhills) (Con)
It is a privilege to serve under your chairmanship and have the benefit of your experience and guidance, Sir David. It is interesting to note that you successfully steered your own private Member’s Bill through the House and, like me, you were drawn fifth in the private Members’ ballot, which I hope is a good omen for Peter Pan and me.
My private Member’s Bill makes provision in relation to two main subjects. First, the Bill makes provision to remove the power of the Secretary of State for Health to appoint trustees to NHS bodies in England, and it makes amendments to primary legislation consequential on the removal of that power. That will fulfil a commitment made by the Government in 2014, following a consultation on the regulation of NHS charities begun in 2012. The Bill will give greater freedom to such charities for fundraising; it will reduce the burden of dual governance in the form of the Department of Health and the Charity Commission; and it will provide greater liability protection for trustees than enjoyed at present.
Secondly, the Bill makes provision to amend section 301 of and schedule 6 to the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to transfer to Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity—Great Ormond Street hospital’s new independent charity—the royalty rights to J. M. Barrie’s “Peter Pan” play. Currently, the rights are conferred on special trustees appointed by the Secretary of State under NHS legislation.
I am happy to talk the Committee through the grouped clauses for the benefit of Members if that would be beneficial.
The Minister for Community and Social Care (Alistair Burt)
It is a great pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir David, particularly in such happy circumstances. The Government welcome the Bill as a whole, and I will perhaps say something about that in my conclusion.
The Government support the provisions in clauses 1 and 2 and schedule 1 relating to the removal of the Secretary of State’s powers under the National Health Service Act 2006 to appoint special trustees in England and to appoint trustees to certain NHS bodies in England that can hold charitable property. The removal of those powers to appoint trustees, and the supplementary and consequential provisions made in these clauses and schedule 1, will deliver on a key Government commitment made in response to the review of the regulation and governance of NHS charities in 2014. Those powers are no longer considered necessary, as the Government committed to allowing NHS charities to become independent if they so choose. Those NHS charities that do not wish to become independent will remain governed by NHS legislation, with the NHS body holding the charitable body as a corporate trustee—meaning that the board of the NHS body acts as trustee of the property.
My hon. Friend has set out the effect of these provisions and the rationale behind them, and I do not propose to detain the Committee by repeating that detail. The Government support clauses 1 and 2, and schedule 1, standing part of the Bill.
Alistair Burt
On a point of order, Sir David. May I beg the indulgence of the Committee for one moment to pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Aldridge-Brownhills for this Bill, which will forever after be known as the “Peter Pan and Wendy Bill”?
As you quite rightly said, Sir David, because we spent some time debating the Bill on Second Reading, there was no reason to do so in Committee. However, I want to put it on record that the Bill will ensure that the rights, royalties and other remuneration in respect of “Peter Pan”, the play by J.M. Barrie, are to be conferred on the new, independent Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity. Indeed, dealing with the legislative changes that have been made was one of the points of the Bill. The contribution that J.M. Barrie’s play has made to Great Ormond Street hospital over the years is, of course, well known. It has been of immense benefit and provides the hospital with an opportunity for its stories to go beyond even the extraordinary work that it does for children, to be associated forever with Peter Pan.
Making this change in legislation, as proposed by my hon. Friend, was an important thing to do. It had to be done well, properly and quickly, and it has been. It is a wonderful coincidence that her name happens to be as it is, and that we have this opportunity to pass the “Peter Pan and Wendy Bill”. I am not quite sure what role I play: that morning I was both Tinker Bell and Captain Hook—later in the morning and for other reasons—so I have learned that lesson.
The provisions of the Bill also deliver on a Government commitment made in December 2014 to Baroness Blackstone in the other place, who wished to table an amendment to the Deregulation Bill, as it was, to deliver the same result. We pay due tribute to her for all her work.
All those connected with Great Ormond Street hospital should know that the whole House supports what it does. This is a nice thing that we are able to do today, but the contribution of “Peter Pan” has been immense. Nevertheless, we are all pleased to have played a small part in the history of both the hospital and the royalties of the play, and to have set my hon. Friend on course, within her first few months of being in Parliament, to pilot her own private Member’s Bill through the House. I am grateful to the whole Committee for its attendance today, to my hon. Friend, to you, Sir David, and to all our officials.
Wendy Morton
On a point of order, Sir David. The Minister has put things very succinctly. I would like to thank you, Sir David, for your excellent chairmanship, the Clerks of the Committee and my colleagues from all sides of the House. Today is a busy day in the House, so I really appreciate their giving up their time. I know that they have done so knowing how important the Bill is and what a big difference it will make, especially to Great Ormond Street hospital. Thank you all very much.
NHS (Charitable Trusts Etc.) Bill
Debate between Wendy Morton and Alistair Burt(9 years, 1 month ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Wendy Morton (Aldridge-Brownhills) (Con)
I beg to move, That the Bill be now read a Second time.
Let me begin by thanking all the Members who are present for giving up a Friday in their constituencies to take part in what I believe will be a very important debate, and all the Members on both sides of the House who have sponsored my Bill. It was a tremendous honour, and also a surprise, for me, a new Member of Parliament, to be drawn in the ballot for private Members’ Bills the day after making my maiden speech. I am not normally drawn in a raffle, so this was something of a coup.
As many colleagues had warned me would happen, a raft of suggestions for Bills came flooding my way, on to the internet, into my inbox, and as text messages. All of a sudden I was the No. 1 favourite MP, and enjoyed a few minutes of fame. After some consideration, however, one Bill caught my eye, the one that I should like to be referred to as “the Peter Pan Bill”.
The Minister for Community and Social Care (Alistair Burt)
Peter Pan and Wendy!
Wendy Morton
Indeed. I had often wondered why my mum and dad named me Wendy, and that was obviously the reason.
Like many other people, I knew of the tremendous work of Great Ormond Street hospital. Each year, children from all over the United Kingdom, many of whom suffer from rare, complex and life-threatening conditions that cannot be treated elsewhere, go to that specialist hospital to benefit from its specialist care. Sadly, for many children Great Ormond Street is the last hope, and, although it is one of the world’s leading children’s research hospitals, for some of those conditions there are no known cures.
I was also aware of the very special link with J.M. Barrie, whose generous bequest to the hospital consisted of the royalties for commercial publications and public performances of his play “Peter Pan”. What I did not know, however, was that legislation was needed to enable the right to those royalties to be given to the new, independent Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity to which the current NHS charity is in the course of being converted. The right to the royalties is currently conferred on the special trustees for Great Ormond Street hospital who are appointed by the Secretary of State. Baroness Blackstone first raised the need to amend legislation to enable Great Ormond Street hospital to continue to benefit from the Barrie bequest during the passage, in the other place, of the Bill that became the Deregulation Act 2015, and the Government agreed to introduce legislation at the earliest opportunity. My Bill will do that by amending the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
I have to say that my warm and comforting thoughts of Great Ormond Street vanished temporarily when I read more of the briefing that had been prepared for the Bill, and discovered a proposal to remove powers from the Secretary of State for Health. I was a little concerned. Could I have been handed a Trojan rocking horse? Well, I can assure Members that if I had been, I would not be presenting the Bill today, because it also paves the way for sensible housekeeping on the part of NHS charities, the Secretary of State and his Department. As a new, eager and enthusiastic Member of Parliament, and one who wishes to see less bureaucracy, less duplication and less Government interference, I think it fair to say that the opportunity to remove some of the Secretary of State’s powers had a certain attraction.
Before I deal with the details of the Bill, let me assure you, Mr Speaker—and I hope you will not be too disappointed—that this Wendy will not be flying through the sky, or indeed the Chamber, on an adventure with a mischievous little boy called Peter Pan and a fairy named Tinker Bell, although I shall remain firmly on my guard for Captain Hook and ticking crocodiles.
Let me start with the background to the Bill, which, although it might seem technical in parts, is necessary and important. NHS charities are regulated under charity law but are also linked to NHS bodies and bound by NHS legislation. They are charitable trusts established under NHS legislation and have as their trustee an NHS body such as a foundation trust or trustees appointed by the Secretary of State for an NHS body. NHS charities are distinct from independent charities, which are established solely under charity law. As we would expect, funds donated to the NHS must be held separately from Exchequer funding provided by the taxpayer. These charities exist to support the beneficiaries and there is a special relationship between the charities and the trusts with which they are associated.
The first part of the Bill makes provision to remove the Secretary of State for Health’s powers to appoint trustees for NHS bodies in England and to appoint special trustees in England for specific hospitals. It also amends primary legislation in this regard. It fulfils a Government commitment made in 2014 following a 2012 Department of Health review and consultation on the governance of NHS charities. The outcome of the consultation was that NHS charities should be allowed to convert to independence should they so choose and the Secretary of State for Health’s powers to appoint trustees to NHS bodies under the National Health Service Act 2006 should be removed at the earliest legislative opportunity.
You may well ask why, Mr Speaker, and I can understand that question, but please let me try to explain. A number of the larger NHS charities called for reform because they were concerned that the NHS legislative framework limited their freedom to grow and develop their charitable activity to best support their beneficiaries and to demonstrate to potential donors visible independence from Government.
Wendy Morton
Let us hope so. Many artists and authors around the country have preferred charities to which they donate and give their royalties, but by highlighting the work of J. M. Barrie and Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital Charity the measure may, fingers crossed, lead to more of them doing so.
The Minister for Community and Social Care (Alistair Burt)
Before we leave the Scottish dimension, may I say that my granny was born in Angus, fairly close to where J. M. Barrie comes from?
Mr Speaker
Order. We are learning quite a lot about Members’ family circumstances, and it is very illuminating.
Alistair Burt
It is about exactly that. In a world of never-ending resources, there would be no need to look for charitable funding. As I have said, charitable funding covers not just finance but the instinct to give and support. Even if it was not about finance, plenty of people are able to support their local communities and local hospitals, not because they contribute financially, but because they give their time. Leagues of friends and others are perfect examples of that instinct.
My hon. Friend the Member for Stafford (Jeremy Lefroy) spoke characteristically succinctly about charities making a real difference in his hospital and health community. My hon. Friend the Member for North East Somerset (Mr Rees-Mogg) made a vigorous defence of the private Member’s Bill as an example of Conservative principles and values. I am not sure whether he wanted to convey that a vigorous defence of fundamental Conservative principles is best and appropriately summed up in a Bill about Peter Pan and Neverland. Perhaps he recognised that those principles are reflected in the fact that the most successful example of the genre is everlastingly popular. I am sure that is exactly what my hon. Friend meant to convey.
Members can imagine my shock at my hon. Friend’s suggestion that an anonymised, bureaucratic element in the NHS might be pursuing a seemingly puzzling and unnecessary course of action to add to bureaucratic difficulties. Although I do not necessarily recognise the exact unit of which he speaks, I will look into his concerns, just in case it can be identified.
My hon. Friend the Member for Eddisbury (Antoinette Sandbach) spoke of the contribution of Alder Hey hospital, which was also welcomed and supported by the right hon. Member for Knowsley (Mr Howarth). My hon. Friend spoke of the new hospital and the charity work being done there. I am sure that most Members present would wish to recognise her contribution to a debate earlier this week in very different circumstances. She was immensely brave and her remarks will no doubt lead to much good. In today’s debate, she pointed out that charities can make a contribution to the running of even the best known hospitals.
Finally, my hon. Friend the Member for Bury St Edmunds (Jo Churchill), who had a personal reason for her particular interest in the Bill, referred to this country’s extraordinary pioneering work in medicine. That was exemplified by the news just this morning of genetic editing and the happy outcome for one little girl in particular. That reminds us of this country’s extraordinary reputation in medicine and medical research, and of the work of medical academics and all other health professionals. Every day we are appreciative of everything they have done for and contributed to this country’s reputation.
Wendy Morton
My Bill focuses on the 16 charities that are either moving to independence or reverting to corporate trustee status. The number fluctuates a little, but there are at least 260 NHS charities. During this debate, we have heard fantastic examples of the work being done right across the country. Although we are focusing on the 16, the model of independence is available to other corporate NHS charities. Highlighting the work they all do is a great way for us as parliamentarians to learn from the wealth of experience out there.
Alistair Burt
My hon. Friend neatly sums up her Bill, which I will now address, and reminds us of the work of so many different trusts.
Before I finish my tributes, may I briefly mention the work of the Bedford Hospitals Charity and Brian Woodrow in my constituency? They have made an immense contribution to my constituents and those around Bedfordshire, not least through the Primrose appeal and the magnificent Macmillan cancer treatment centre that resulted from it.
Although I intend to go into the technical details of the Bill, because that is important, I also want to speak in the following debate. I do not want to take an unreasonable amount of time, but I hope the House will appreciate that there are things I must cover.
I am delighted we have the opportunity to debate and discuss NHS charities, which provide support to our health system that is crucial to the delivery of better care for patients. Thanks to the generosity of the people of this country, NHS charities have been able to deliver valuable enhancements to the wellbeing and experience of patients and staff for many decades. I hope that today’s debate has helped to publicise the valuable work the charities do, and that it will encourage more people to give them their support.
This Government have listened to NHS charities and delivered the opportunity for those that wish to have greater independence in order to evolve and grow to meet the needs of their beneficiaries. A number of charities have seized the opportunity to become independent, with others planning to do so in the near future.
The Bill puts the last pieces of the jigsaw in place to deliver the vision the Government set out in 2014. When the previous Government came to office in 2010, a number of NHS charities and their representative bodies and interest groups were calling for reform. They were concerned about the NHS framework and inflexibility. The Government were also committed to deregulation, promoting localism and the big society, and freeing the NHS from central Government controls.
Following a review in 2011, the Government consulted in 2012 on options for changes to the regulation and governance of NHS charities. The fundamental aim of the proposals was to review the legislative powers relating to the governance of NHS charities, to preserve and extend their independence from central Government.
In their 2014 response to the consultation, the Government noted that the majority of respondents supported the principle of the proposals for the transition of NHS charities to independent charity status. They concluded that it would be appropriate to allow those NHS charities that wish to do so to convert to become an independent charity.