Written question asked by Sandra Gidley (Liberal Democrat) on Tuesday, 24 January 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 26 January 2006. It was answered by Liam Byrne (Labour) on Thursday, 16 March 2006 on behalf of the Department of Health.

Elder Abuse

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she is taking to ensure that effective vetting and barring mechanisms are in place to protect older people at risk of abuse.

Answer: The Protection of Vulnerable Groups Bill, published on 1 March, proposes to extend coverage of the existing barring schemes, to provide a more comprehensive and consistent measure of protection for vulnerable groups across social care, the national health service and beyond. Subject to the successful passage through Parliament of the bill, staged implementation of the new scheme will begin in 2007 with the bulk of the scheme rolled out in 2008.

Secondary information