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Health and Social Care Bill

Before the Minister finally sits down, I would just like to say why I have been so quiet this afternoon. I would like to have supported the noble Earl, Lord Howe, because he and I have battled this out and tried to get some sense into LINks during the passage of the original Bill. I am speaking now because there is time for thought between now and Report, when I may be more vocal in this area. I do not know what LINks are or will be—I do not even know what grammar to use to describe them. That has been my difficulty. Therefore, if I support the noble Earl, which I would like to do, I do not know whom I am supporting in having this power in relation to the users. I might prefer all the other groupings, if I understood them. I might have preferred Parliament to have created a different kind of representative body. One reason for the demise of the community health councils was that they were rather troublesome. They raised issues that should have been raised, but sometimes not in the quietest way. My worry about LINks is that they are so amorphous that their voice will be muted, particularly in relating directly to the local authority. Some organisations owe their funding to the local authority. I declare an interest as someone with a sister who feels she cannot speak out about what is happening in the voluntary sector because she is dependent on funding from her local authority, which is a typical scenario that happens with people who are dependent on funding. LINks will be dependent on funding from the local authority. At the moment, we have no picture of how that will be managed or monitored—points made clearly in previous debates. I also find it difficult to know whether it is appropriate to monitor user involvement. While I am on my feet, I should say that there are also some real issues about user involvement and the privacy of those using the institutions, homes and hospitals. I was appalled to hear the noble Lord’s description. I hope and pray that he reported directly to his local commissioners, because no visitor should see that kind of condition and not report what has been seen. He should also expect a response. I relate that directly back to LINks. LINks should have on them people such as the noble Lord who can report directly back. Then there is a voice that is not muted by the local authority. The report can go directly to the Secretary of State, although I still do not know exactly how that accountability will work, and the commission will somehow be able to get that information together. The Commission for Social Care Inspection excelled in many areas, but particularly where there was no information about the number of homes and their conditions. We now have a complete register. It would be valuable if the new commission could link into the local bodies to gather that information. There is an awful lot to do here until we are absolutely clear about how this pattern and matrix will work. That is crucial if ordinary folks’ voices are to be heard appropriately and privacy maintained.