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Health and Social Care Bill

I agree that the commission must be able to take robust, appropriate and timely action where services are failing. Warning notices under Clause 25 will be an important new sanction which might be appropriate for first-time or minor breaches of regulatory requirements. The issuing of a notice should encourage a provider to change their behaviour to comply with requirements. In the expectation that they will do so, Clause 25 allows warning notices to specify a period in which to correct an issue. The commission will need to specify precisely the failure which concerns it, and which must be rectified within the timescale. If the problem has not been resolved after the period has expired, the commission will be able to take stronger action if necessary. Allowing for this period will not, however, tie the hands of the commission. Subsection (4) does not prevent the commission taking further, stronger, repeat enforcement action, even within that specified period, if the situation deteriorates, or if the commission has a concern about a separate, more serious issue that arises and was not addressed in the warning notice. For instance, the commission may give an NHS trust or care home a warning notice in relation to poor infection control. If the situation deteriorates, or there is evidence of an additional breach, the commission would take further and immediate action. Allowing service providers wherever possible the opportunity to address failings while they are still relatively minor seems to be an important part of encouraging improvement, as long as people who are using the services are protected from harm. The Bill allows the commission the freedom to respond appropriately to breaches of requirements of the registration system. As we will discuss over the next couple of groups of amendments, we have deliberately given the commission a more flexible range of enforcement powers than currently exist under the Care Standards Act 2000. This is in response to feedback, particularly from CSCI, and would enable much more effective regulation. The commission will be free to determine which powers are appropriate in a particular situation. The Bill also allows for sanctions to be imposed urgently if necessary. I hope that that addresses the issue raised by the noble Earl and that he will feel able to withdraw his amendment.