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NHS Co-payments (Mrs. O'Boyle)

We are not being party political, so we can be generous in giving way. Perhaps I did not express myself clearly, but the Minister did not address my central point. The Department's policy on co-payments—the ban on them—is in the form of guidance, not instruction. That allows PCTs up and down the country to use their discretion when implementing co-payments or not doing so. If the Minister is absolutely convinced by the case against co-payments, why does not he simply ban them and close that loophole? The Government are allowing the loophole to exist.