NHS (Charitable Trusts Etc) Bill — House of Commons, 2016-01-22
Topic: Health
Jane Ellison (Conservative, Centre-right): We have had a productive debate on this Bill. I thank hon. Members from both sides of the House for their contributions—well, there was a contribution from the Opposition Front Bench—and put on the record my appreciation of the consensual way in which the Bill has been approached by all parties. This has been a welcome opportunity to name-check a number of excellent local charities and some well-loved characters from fiction As others have done, I put on the record my thanks to my hon. Friend the Member for Aldridge-Brownhills (Wendy Morton) for her dedication to piloting the Bill through the House. She has put a great deal of time and effort into understanding the issues that face charities. She has met the Association of NHS Charities, attended the annual business meeting for its members and wrestled with the complexities of charity law and its relationship with NHS legislation. I am sure that the House will join me in thanking her for her dedication to ensuring that the Bill has made such great progress Although I do not want to repeat what my hon. Friend has said, I will quickly summarise the aim of each of the measures in the Bill. The Bill completes the reform of the regulation and governance of NHS charities. It delivers the Government’s commitment to repeal at the first opportunity the Secretary of State’s powers in England to appoint trustees to NHS bodies and special trustees. Those powers are no longer needed. NHS charities can choose to become independent under the sole regulation of the Charity Commission or remain as NHS charities with the linked trust as corporate trustee, in which case they are subject to dual regulation by the Charity Commission and the Secretary of State The reform of NHS charity regulation and governance delivers the changes that NHS charities have asked for. A number of the largest ones, which we have spoken about in the course of this debate, have made it clear that they need those changes. The Charity Commission believes that dual regulation—being under both NHS and charity law—can make it difficult for NHS charities to achieve and demonstrate independence. That is why in 2014, following the public consultation, the Department announced its intention to allow NHS charities to move to independent charity status under charity law. Charities that decide to become independent are no longer NHS charities, but independent charities that appoint their own trustees The Department also made it clear in its response that, given the new freedom for NHS charities to become independent, the Secretary of State’s powers to appoint trustees were no longer necessary. The charities with trustees appointed by the Secretary of State need to decide whether to move to independence or revert to corporate trustee status before the powers are removed. Independence is not an option solely for NHS charities with trustees appointed by the Secretary of State. Many of the charities that we have discussed with corporate trustee arrangements are large enough to be able to consider independence as a viable option for the future. Corporate trustees should also actively consider whether independence is in the best interests of their beneficiaries The Department has indicated that the powers to appoint trustees will not be revoked before April 2018 to provide a period of grace for trustees appointed by the Secretary of State to determine the most appropriate legal form for their charity Should any NHS charity not have resolved its future by the time the powers are repealed, the Bill confers powers on the Secretary of State to make regulations to transfer charitable property from the trustees of an NHS trust or NHS foundation trust to the trust itself. There are strong grounds for believing that those powers will not need to be exercised. However, it is necessary to take such powers to ensure that all NHS charitable assets are appropriately protected and dealt with before the powers for the Secretary of State to appoint trustees are repealed The Government have listened to NHS charities and delivered what they asked for: the choice to become independent under the sole regulation of the Charity Commission or to remain NHS charities. Some of the largest and most successful have already taken the opportunity to become independent; others are preparing to follow in their wake. The vast majority of NHS charities with trustees appointed by the Secretary of State have indicated that they intend to become independent. All are actively considering the legal form that most favours their beneficiaries. It is therefore clear that the Government’s decision to repeal the Secretary of State’s powers to appoint trustees at the earliest legislative opportunity is right. The powers are no longer necessary and should therefore be removed from the statute book As we have heard from the measure’s promoter, the Bill will also secure Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity’s rights in perpetuity to royalties from performances and publications of the play "Peter Pan". The hospital has always relied on public support, even after the founding of the NHS in 1948. It is important that that can continue The mission of Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity is to raise money to enable the hospital to continue to provide the very best care for its young patients and their families and to do all the groundbreaking work that we have heard about in the debate. Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity was eager to take the opportunity to become independent and it became partially independent on 1 April 2015. However, it was unable to complete its conversion to become an independent charity as the NHS charity had to remain in existence until the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 was amended, to avoid its statutory rights to "Peter Pan" royalties being lost. The Bill confers the rights to royalties from the play "Peter Pan" on the new independent charity for Great Ormond Street hospital The two parts of the Bill are very much related in that Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity needs to be able to complete its conversion to independent status without losing its rights to the "Peter Pan" royalties so that the Secretary of State’s powers to appoint trustees to NHS bodies may be repealed. The Government would not remove those powers until the charity no longer needed its Secretary of State-appointed trustees to receive royalties from "Peter Pan" The Bill is about completing the reform that NHS charities asked for. The Government have enabled NHS charities to become independent if they decide that that is in the best interests of their beneficiaries. Great Ormond Street hospital is one of the most cherished institutions in the NHS. The royalties from the play "Peter Pan" have been a hugely valuable source of funds for Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity in its support of the amazing work that we have heard about today. We want the charity to continue to receive those royalties in perpetuity, as J. M. Barrie would have wished. The Bill will secure the charity’s rights to the royalties from the play "Peter Pan", enabling it to complete its conversion to an independent charity My hon. Friend the Member for Aldridge-Brownhills has shown, in steering the Bill so ably through the House, what we all know from our childhoods: Peter Pan and Wendy make a great team Question put and agreed to. Bill accordingly read the Third time and passed.