HL Deb 17 June 1999 vol 602 cc455-7

(".—(1) Arrangements may he made between the Commission and a Minister of the Crown—

  1. (a) for the Commission to perform any of its functions in relation to any prescribed health scheme for which the Minister has responsibility, or
  2. (b) for the Commission to provide services or facilities in so far as they are required by the Minister in connection with any such health scheme.

(2) Arrangements may be made between the Commission and a Northern Ireland Minister—

  1. (a) for the Commission to perform on behalf of the Minister any functions of the Minister which
    1. (i) correspond to any functions of the Commission, and
    2. (ii) relate to the Northern Irish health service, or
    3. (b) for the Commission to provide services or facilities in so far as they are required by the Minister in connection with the exercise by him of any such functions.

(3) Arrangements under this section may be made on such terms and conditions as may be agreed between the parties to the arrangements.

(4) Those terms and conditions may include provision with respect to the making of payments to the Commission in respect of the cost to the Commission of performing or providing any functions, services or facilities under the arrangements.

(5) Any arrangements under subsection (2)(a) are not to affect the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Minister on whose behalf any functions are exercised.

(6) In this section— health scheme" means any scheme which appears to the Secretary of State to be a health or medical scheme paid for out of public funds, Minister of the Crown" has the same meaning as in the Ministers of the Crown Act 1975, Northern Ireland Minister" includes the First Minister, the deputy First Minister and a Northern Ireland department, Northern Irish health service" means any of the health services under any enactment which extends to Northern Ireland and which corresponds to section 1(1) of the 1977 Act, prescribed" means prescribed by regulations made by the Secretary of State.

31 Clause 19, page 22, line 28, leave out ("relating to") and insert ("which are the subject of")

32 Page 22, line 32, leave out front ("provision") to ("identifies") in line 34 and insert ("with respect to the disclosure of confidential information which relates to and")

33 Page 22, line 36, leave out ("document or information is made available or produced") and insert ("information is disclosed")

34 Page 22, line 38, leave out from second ("the") to end of line 39 and insert ("information being disclosed")

35 Page 22, line 44, leave out ("make available or produce the document or") and insert ("disclose the")

36 Page 23, line 5, leave out from second ("the") to ("without") in line 6 and insert ("information should be disclosed")

37 Page 23, line 8, leave out from ("provision") to ("prohibited") in line 10 and insert ("with respect to the disclosure of information if that disclosure would be")

38 Page 23, line 10, leave out ("a document or")

39 Page 23, line 12, leave out ("document or")

40 Page 23, line 14, leave out ("as to the inspection, copying or production of the document or") and insert ("with respect to the disclosure of the")

41 Page 23, leave out lines 29 and 30

42 Clause 20, page 23, line 41, leave out subsection (1) and insert—

("(1) A person who, without lawful authority, knowingly or recklessly discloses information which—

  1. (a) falls within section 19(2), and
  2. (b) has been obtained by the Commission in accordance with any condition mentioned in section 19(2),

is guilty of an offence if the disclosure is made during the lifetime of the individual to which the information relates.

(1A) A person who, without lawful authority, knowingly or recklessly discloses information which—

  1. (a) relates to and identifies an individual,
  2. (b) has been obtained by the Commission on terns or in circumstances requiring it to be held in confidence, and
  3. (c) does not fall within subsection (1),

guilty of an offence if the disclosure is made during the lifetime of that individual.")

43 Page 24, line 1, leave out from ("person") to ("liable") in line 2 and insert ("guilty of an offence under this section is")

44 Page 24, line 9, leave out from ("form") to ("or") in line 10 and insert ("in which the individual to which the information relates is not identified")

45 Page 24, line 23, leave out ("or any person authorised to act on his behalf")

46 Page 24, line 33, leave out paragraph (g) and insert—

("(g) in a case where the information appears to the Commission to reveal—

  1. (i) that the performance of a health professional in his capacity as such has or may have fallen substantially below that which is expected,
  2. (ii) that a health professional has or may have been guilty of serious professional misconduct, or
    3. 457
  3. (iii) that the fitness of a health professional to practise as such is or may be seriously impaired by reason of his physical or mental condition,
and the person to whom the information is disclosed is a person to whom the Commission considers that it should be disclosed in order for appropriate action to be taken, or")

47 Page 24, line 36, leave out ("relates to a person who") and insert ("reveals that a person")

48 Page 24, line 40, at end insert—

("(5A) For the purposes of subsection (3)(a), information obtained by the Commission is to be regarded as identifying an individual if the individual can be identified—

  1. (a) from that information, or
  2. (b) from that information and from other information obtained by the Commission.

(5B) For the purposes of subsection (3)(a), information disclosed by a person is not to be regarded as being in a form in which an individual is not identified if the individual can be identified—

  1. (a) from that information, or
  2. (b) from that information and from other information disclosed—
    1. (i) by the Commission, or
    2. (ii) by any member or employee of the Commission.

(5C) Any reference in subsection (1), (1A), (5A) or (5B)(b)(i) to the Commission includes a reference to any person authorised by the Commission under section 19.")

49 Page 24, leave out line 42

Baroness Hayman

My Lords, I beg to move that the House do agree with the Commons in their Amendments Nos. 27 to 49. I have already spoken to these amendments.

Moved, That the House do agree with the Commons in their Amendments Nos. 27 to 49.—(Baroness Hayman.)

On Question, Motion agreed to.