Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the Care Quality Commission (CQC) requires CQC inspectors to identify themselves as such when visiting patients in a personal capacity in CQC inspected premises.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and adult social care providers in England and has a key responsibility in the overall assurance of safety and quality of health and adult social care services. The CQC has provided the following information.

The CQC inspectors are not required to identify themselves when visiting patients in a personal capacity in the CQC inspected premises. Section 62(5) of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 requires inspectors to identify themselves only when they are carrying out an inspection, and when they are asked to do so. In these circumstances the inspector is required to produce their warrant.