Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to protect doctors from clinical negligence investigations arising from the need to work in different specialities to their own area of routine clinical practice during the covid-19 pandemic.

The Government’s focus throughout this period has been to support the National Health Service and NHS staff to respond effectively to the pandemic and this includes supporting NHS staff who are working outside their own area of routine clinical practice.

Healthcare professionals should at all times ensure they are competent to carry out any practice requested of them. If they are asked to work for an NHS trust or general practitioner practice, the existing state indemnity schemes will provide them with cover for clinical negligence arising from their activities. In the unlikely event that they are involved in the novel delivery of NHS services that fall outside the scope of these state schemes, we have ensured that they will be covered by the indemnity provision under the Coronavirus Act 2020.