Question reference: S5W-34258
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
- Date lodged: 23 December 2020
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Current status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 20 January 2021
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its timetable is for (a) commencement and (b) implementation of the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019; whether that timetable includes any pilot schemes; in which NHS board area any such pilot would take place; when any such pilot scheme would begin, and what the duration would be of any such pilot scheme.
Answer
My officials previously proposed a phased commencement of the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019 (the Act) and this remains the Government’s intention. Commencement of the Act will also require regulations to be made and there is very limited parliamentary time left in this session to progress secondary legislation. Due to pressures on that limited time caused by the priority of Covid-19 and EU Exit legislation, the current focus has been on critical legislation that requires to be progressed before the dissolution of Parliament for the 2021 election.
Prior to Covid, the Act Implementation Team were undertaking a programme of preparatory work to lay the way for implementation. This included the preparation of statutory guidance; a series of stakeholder engagement events to consult on the guidance, including visits to every Board and establishing 13 distinct working groups for specific guidance chapters; the instructing of regulations, and the preparation for detailed end to end testing of the Act’s statutory guidance at four Health Boards. Following on from this process a public consultation would take place.
This work had not concluded pre-Covid when the Act became one of a number of areas of policy/legislation to be suspended in order to prioritise the Government’s response to the pandemic. A significant amount of work was undertaken to draft guidance prior to the pandemic, however further work is still required. It will also be important to reflect on learning from Covid-19 and whether some redrafting of the current draft guidance will be required as a result.
Given that Covid-19 has considerably stretched resources within Boards and the wider health and social care sector, as well as the continuing uncertainty facing us, we believe it is not practical to establish a definitive implementation timetable for bringing the Act into force. However, the Scottish Government is resolute in its continuing commitment to the Act and its principles. Health and social care staff across Scotland have risen to the very significant challenges posed by Covid, showing incredible resolve and flexibility, and we will ensure this Act is implemented effectively to drive positive change for NHS staff and patients.