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Health Professions (Hearing Aid Dispensers) Order 2009

I thank noble Lords for their comments and the fact that there is such a welcome for the order. I have had one of the most comprehensive briefs ever—and all excellent stuff. I think that we have been able to find an answer for virtually every question. The noble Earl asked whether there were plans to regulate any more professions. Indeed, the Health Care and Associated Professions (Miscellaneous Amendments and Practitioner Psychologists) Order 2009 introduced a statutory regulation saying that we would be looking to bring them under the Health Professions Council. A number of groups of healthcare workers are currently not regulated, and we are considering the need to regulate them, and when regulation is justified, identifying an appropriate model of regulation in the light of the recommendations of the extending professional regulation group. That includes hearing aid assistance. The noble Earl also asked about how audiologists could be regulated as a priority. We are consulting on the proposals for healthcare scientists, and we expect to publish the response at the turn of this year. We published a White Paper in February stating the Government’s intention to introduce statutory regulations for healthcare scientists as a priority, and that is what we are pushing forward. The noble Baroness, Lady Barker, asked about screening, which was a perfectly sensible question. I think that I touched on that in my opening remarks. The legislation addresses the functions performed by the registry as assessing hearing, testing and prescribing a hearing aid, so it includes screening. Provided that the screener is not carrying out these functions with a view to the sale, retail or hiring of hearing aids, there will be no need for them to register. We would expect the screening to be carried out in the manner in which it is being done. On the merging of private hearing aid dispensers, and NHS-associated practitioners undertaking a hearing aid practitioner role being regulated as one professional group, the role is just emerging within the NHS and requires further development, including ensuring that it fits within the overall career framework for healthcare scientists. The new arrangements are being proposed as part of modernising scientific careers, so I do not expect that the timetable will be any faster than the one that the noble Baroness mentioned. I can confirm to my noble friend Lady Pitkeathley that Article 6(7) of the hearing aid dispensers order will allow the HPC to deal with cases where the HAC has imposed a penalty in any way that it considers fit, and indeed, there will be a complete review of cases to do whatever it considers appropriate. When the functions transfer from one regulatory body to another, it makes sense to have a review process on the sanctions imposed by that transfer. The HPC has confirmed that it will review outstanding cases and those with sanctions internally in the first instance, with the outstanding cases then likely to be reviewed by a panel. It is not anticipating problems. It is meeting the HAC to discuss outstanding cases on a two-weekly basis. We expect the number of cases to be very small indeed. I hope that that answers most of the questions. I commend the order to the Committee. Motion agreed.