Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will take legislative steps to align (a) standards and (b) fitness to practice processes across all healthcare profession regulators.

Between 24 March and 16 June 2021, the Government consulted on proposals to reform the regulation of healthcare professionals, and on the introduction of anaesthesia associates (AAs) and physician associates (PAs) into statutory regulation by the General Medical Council (GMC). The consultation was entitled Regulating healthcare professionals, protecting the public, and proposed that all regulators should have broadly consistent powers in relation to standard setting and fitness to practise.

The Government’s response to the consultation was published in February 2023 and detailed our proposed reforms to the regulators’ standard setting powers. It also set out a new fitness to practise process for all regulators.

A modernised regulatory framework is being introduced firstly for AAs and PAs. The Anaesthesia Associates and Physician Associates Order 2024, laid on 13 December 2023, allows for the statutory regulation of AAs and PAs by the GMC under the new framework. The reformed regulatory framework will be rolled out to all regulated healthcare professionals, beginning with doctors, and the professions regulated by the Nursing and Midwifery Council and the Health and Care Professions Council, over the next couple of years.