Subordinate Legislation Committee, 28 Sep 1999

Meeting date: Tuesday, September 28, 1999

Official Report 79KB pdf

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National Health Service (General Medical Services) (Scotland) Amendment (No 4) Regulations 1999 (SSI 1999/54) National Health Service (General Ophthalmic Services) (Scotland) Amendment (No 2) Regulations 1999 (SSI 1999/55)

We will deal with the health service regulations collectively. We flagged up various matters with the Executive last week and have received a response.

A number of the regulations have been amended on several occasions. The point we raised with the Executive was that if regulations were being amended, say, more than five times, it might be appropriate for them to be consolidated, for ease of reference for people who are considering the statutory instruments and for the legal profession as a whole. We should include in our report that there should be a general principle that regulations are updated when they have been subject to amendment more than five times.

Given that the Scottish Parliament is only recently established, it may set a ground rule for new Scottish regulations that will be easier for us, and everyone else in the country, to access. We should note in our report the responses from the Executive, which say that it takes on board some of the points that we have made.

Cost has been flagged up but it is more important that the regulations can be read. We should comment on that.

I would like to know what the Executive means by "as soon as practically possible".

We can go back to it on that. I agree wholeheartedly with the comments of Bristow, Trish and Ian. I take it that the committee's view is that we will draw our views on consolidation to the attention of the Parliament and perhaps clarify with the Executive what it means by "as soon as practically possible".