Health and Community Care Committee, 06 Oct 1999

Meeting date: Wednesday, October 6, 1999

Official Report 172KB pdf

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National Health Service (Travelling Expenses and Remission of Charges) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 1999 (SSI 1999/63)

Again, no motion has been lodged. Is the committee happy to agree that the attention of Parliament need not be drawn to the instrument?

What I have to say will not change the fact that Parliament will not be considering the instrument, but I want to put it on the record. The explanatory note states:

"Regulation 4 amends Table A in Schedule 1 to the principal Regulations . . . in relation to the calculation of resources in the case of students."

That might be an issue, but we do not have table A. I would love to know why there is a lack of transparency as to the impact that the measure will have on the calculation for students.

We have to cut through the gobbledegook. There is no point in our being given an explanatory note if it refers to things that we do not have in front of us. It is then meaningless and worthless.

Parliament will not be able to consider the instrument because we cannot turn it around, according to standing orders. It is important that when there is a problem the committee should flag it up, so we can return to it.

We should probably raise that with the Procedures Committee as another item relating to SSIs in general. We can use the instrument as a specific example. It is sometimes easier for us to explain what we mean when we have a solid example—this is a fairly solid example of lack of information.

However, with that caveat, are we happy to accept the instrument as outlined?

Members indicated agreement.