§ Mrs. Jegerasked the Secretary of State for Social Services why hospitals about which complaints are investigated by the Health Service Commissioner are not named in his report to Parliament.
§ Mr. EnnalsThe Commissioner has a statutory duty to make a report annually to the Secretary of State on the performance of his functions and the Secretary of State has a similar duty to lay a copy of the report before each House of Parliament. Section 37 of the National Health Service Reorganisation Act 1973 prescribes the parties to whom the Commissioner has a duty to send reports of his investigations and provides that for the purpose of the Law of Defamation the publication of a report as prescribed is absolutely privileged. I understand that the Health Service Commissioner, following the practice adopted by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration and with the approval of the Select Committee, wishes to preserve the confidentiality of the reports of his investigations and does not think it right to include in his report to the Secretary of State details of all individual cases which would be likely to reveal the identity of the persons concerned; this is for the Commissioner himself to decide.