Simon Hamilton
Strangford · Democratic Unionist Party · Northern Ireland
“I have emphasised to the Member and the House before, that, whilst I accept that those are not good enough — that is why we have been developing the plan — there are alternative technologies in place that can present opportunities for those who just cannot get acceptable speeds.”
“I thank the Member for his intervention. There are some initiatives that I believe will help and act as a driver to improve broadband access. One such intervention is the broadband universal service obligation (USO), which is being taken forward by Her Majesty's Government.”
“I thank the Member for his question. However, he is conflating two issues. I wrote to his party leader, and indeed to all Assembly party leaders, before making the announcement that I did last week about wanting to publish the details of the businesses in receipt of the non-domestic RHI scheme. It was my intention to do that tomorrow.”
“<BR /> <BR />The Chancellor, in his autumn statement, made some more funding available for telecommunications, and my Department is studying that and seeking to avail itself of that to the fullest possible extent.”
“In addition, my Department is managing a contract for the delivery of the superfast rollout programme, which, by 31 December, will provide access to superfast broadband with speeds of at least 24 megabits per second to a further 38,000 premises, both business and residential, across Northern Ireland, including in the Newry and Armagh cons…”
“I signalled the intention to do this a few weeks ago. The Member and the House will know that inspections of all installations would have taken place over the 20-year lifetime of the RHI scheme.”
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“Therefore, amendment No 187 amends clause 166(2)(c) by including it as a criterion for the making of a public protection order that the court must be satisfied that dealing with the offender in any way not involving detention would create a risk of serious psychological as well as serious physical harm to other persons. Amendment No 188 amends clause 166(3)(d) by adding a reference to physical or psychological harm, reflecting the former amendment and clarifying the meaning of harm in that context. The amendments ensure that this healthcare disposal is available in all the circumstances in which it may be needed.”
“<BR /> <BR />Amendment No 141 is intended to clarify what is meant by "serious harm" to a person in clause 137. The amendment makes it clear that the purpose of the power for the Police Service of Northern Ireland to remove a person from a public place to a place of safety is to prevent serious physical or psychological harm to that person. The amendment was tabled as a consequence of amendment Nos 187 and 188, which were tabled in response to the concerns of the Committee, whose thorough scrutiny identified a potential gap in clause 166. The Committee had expressed concern that, although a public protection order could be made on the basis of the risk of physical harm posed by an offender to other persons, it would not take account of the risk of psychological harm that the person posed to others.”
“<BR /> <BR />At this point, I thank stakeholders for their input in the development of Part 9, particularly the Police Service of Northern Ireland, who have given great assistance to the Department of Justice in this respect. I also acknowledge the support of the Ad Hoc Joint Committee and commend the approach that it has taken to Part 9, which has been of particular interest to members of that Committee. <BR /> <BR />I consider that the amendments that I have tabled today will further improve these provisions and ensure that this important power to take a person to a place of safety so that he or she can obtain medical assistance acts to protect some of the most vulnerable people in our society. I now turn to the amendments, many of which I intend to group together, with your permission, Mr Deputy Speaker.”
“Part 9 contains powers for the police to remove a person from a public place to a place of safety. That power can be exercised by the Police Service of Northern Ireland in circumstances where failure to remove the person from a public place poses a risk of serious harm to the person or serious physical harm to others. It is a protective power, but the provisions also recognise a key feature of the recommendations of the Bamford review: the importance of a person's autonomy to make decisions where he or she is able to do so. Therefore, the power cannot be exercised if the person is able to make a decision about whether or not they are removed to a place of safety.”
“Amendment Nos 142, 147-151, 172-174, 182,187,188,191-193, 195, 203, 208, 215, 223-224, 227-229, 233, 239-243, 245, 249, 251, 253-254, 257-260, 263, 265-267, 270-272, 275-277, 279, 288, 292, 294-296, 298, 359, 390, 391 and 470.”
“I beg to move amendment No 141: In page 76, line 39, after first "serious" insert "physical or psychological"”
“I have put forward a possible compromise that would allow EPAs to remain in place until the Assembly decided otherwise. I am not sure from listening to Members that that will find a terrible lot of favour. I have never been a politician not to understand and appreciate the direction in which the wind is blowing, and I will reflect on that as we move through the stages of the Bill. <BR /> <BR />The issue has been well aired in the debate and through the deliberations of the Ad Hoc Committee. That concludes my remarks on group 3.”
“I and other Members have used the word "confusion", but that is possibly the wrong word. It does present people with a choice, and the Chair and I will be keen to offer people choice, particularly when purchasing such products that offer people choice. I do take on board his point that it is absolutely the job of a solicitor to explain to people what they should be going for. However, I hope that he and, indeed, others accept that there is at least a risk that, when presented with the choice, given that one may be more expensive — even though that has not been set yet, but let us take the English example as something to go on — individuals may have a propensity to go, "Yes, I've heard the explanation of the choice, but the price difference is so stark that I'm going to go for the cheaper one". That may not be appropriate in every case.”
“I need to emphasise, however — I think that other Members, including the Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee, mentioned this point — that those views persist in spite of Minister Ford's reassurances that the new lasting power of attorney forms will be kept short and straightforward, despite the fact that the costs of making a lasting power of attorney have yet to determined, and despite the substantial year-on-year increases in the numbers of lasting powers of attorney being made in England and Wales over recent years. Moreover, we cannot ignore the potential for confusion for the general public that will arise from having two systems that cover the same ground but in very different ways, not to mention the operational difficulties of running them alongside each other.”
“I think that that is right, in order to give everybody time to reflect on the work that the Department of Finance and Personnel is doing on the issue. That does not do any damage to the ability of the Members opposite or, indeed, any other Member to come back to the issue at a later stage, if they so wish. <BR /> <BR />As anticipated, the debate largely focused on the effect of the Bill as introduced on the existing enduring power of attorney system. Although the position adopted by the Committee on the issue would cause us, I believe, to miss a timely opportunity to draw a line under a piece of legislation based on outdated concepts, the strength of views on the retention of the enduring power of attorney system seems clear.”
“I thank all the Members who have contributed to the debate. As I did with groups 1 and 2, I will try to keep my closing remarks very brief. I think that it is fair to say that the amendments that I tabled in group 3 relating to oversight bodies are straightforward and sensible, and Members appear from their comments not to have any issues with them today, which is encouraging. That allows me to concentrate my closing remarks on the key issues in the group, which relate to lasting powers of attorney and enduring powers of attorney. <BR /> <BR />My view remains unchanged on the amendment proposed by Sinn Féin to extend the lasting power of attorney system to 16- and 17-year-olds, although I welcome the fact that it is now not going to move the amendment.”
“However, as I have said, my strong preference, if the Chamber agrees with the Committee that the enduring power of attorney system should be retained, would be to proceed along the lines of the compromise that I have outlined. <BR /> <BR />That concludes my remarks on the third group of amendments regarding enduring powers of attorney, lasting powers of attorney and oversight bodies. I look forward to the debate that will ensue.”
“<BR /> <BR />To be clear: that compromise option would require Members to support clause 110 and schedule 5 as they stand, on the basis that I commit to bringing forward an amendment at Further Consideration Stage to make their commencement subject to the approval of the Assembly. That will allow the two systems to run alongside each other until such time as the Assembly decides otherwise. <BR /> <BR />Finally, I will briefly address the related amendment No 119, tabled by Ms McCorley and others. The key point to make is that the compromise option would make the proposed amendment redundant, as would the Committee's opposition to clause 110. In essence, they all seek to achieve the same objective.”
“My own view is that, should the Chamber agree with the Committee stance, the more prudent course of action would be to retain the relevant provisions but make their commencement subject to the approval of the Assembly rather than removing them entirely from the Bill. Doing that would place a constraint on the Department's ability to remove the enduring power of attorney system, so enduring powers of attorney could continue to be made for the foreseeable future as the Committee desires, but would avoid the need for new primary legislation and associated resources if difficulties were to arise in the future or a decision were to be taken to remove the enduring power of attorney system following a review in, say, three years' time, which was also suggested by the Committee in its report.”
“My officials, with input from the Department of Finance and Personnel and the Northern Ireland Courts and Tribunals Service, argued that running two systems would be confusing, costly and operationally difficult, and that, ultimately, the new lasting power of attorney system provides better safeguards than the enduring power of attorney system. The Committee did not accept those arguments and proposes to oppose clause 110 and schedule 5. That will have the effect of allowing enduring powers of attorney to continue to be made alongside the new lasting powers of attorney.”
“Importantly, the lasting power of attorney system builds on the safeguards in the enduring power of attorney scheme, offering more protection for donors and attorneys. On that basis, the effect of clause 110, as introduced, would be to repeal the Enduring Powers of Attorney (Northern Ireland) Order 1987, with the effect that no further enduring powers of attorney could be made once clause 110 was commenced. Enduring powers of attorney already made under the current law, however, would be preserved through the savings provisions in schedule 5. <BR /> <BR />The Committee has made it clear that it is not content with the approach outlined. During its deliberations, the question was raised of why the enduring power of attorney system could not run alongside the new lasting power of attorney system.”
“Amendment Nos 362 and 363 are technical amendments that subsume two subsections into one to improve the drafting of the clause. <BR /> <BR />Finally, I propose to address amendment No 119 to clause 110. It was tabled by Ms McCorley, Mr McCartney and Mr Lynch and is somewhat at odds with the Committee's opposition to clause 110 and related schedule 5, which I will also address. I will start by providing Members with background to the issue at hand. As Members are aware, the Bill creates a new scheme of lasting power of attorney to replace the existing outdated enduring power of attorney scheme. Under the new lasting power of attorney system, an attorney can be appointed to deal with not just property and affairs decisions but decisions relating to the donor's care, treatment and personal welfare.”
“<BR /> <BR />Amendment No 342 creates new clause 277B, which places a duty on my Department and the health and social care trusts to provide facilities, such as a room, for example, as the High Court, the review tribunal and the Public Guardian may require for the exercise of functions under the Bill. <BR /> <BR />Amendment Nos 342 and 343 ensure that the bodies providing judicial oversight of interventions under the Bill have adequate access to all of the necessary resources and information required to perform their role. <BR /> <BR />Amendment Nos 361, 362 and 363 relate to clause 283, "Panels". In response to a concern raised by the Committee, amendment No 361 provides that all panel members must be in attendance during proceedings of the panel.”
“The clause allows the tribunal, where it has decided not to release a person, to recommend taking specified actions with a view to a future release, and further considering a person's case if those actions are not complied with. <BR /> <BR />Amendment No 341 creates new clause 277A, which places a duty on my Department and the health and social care trusts to furnish such returns, reports and other information about an individual who is the subject of proceedings under the Bill as the High Court, the review tribunal and the Public Guardian may require for the exercise of functions under the Bill. Associated amendment No 486 is a repeal consequential to amendment No 341.”
“<BR /> <BR />Amendment No 287 amends clause 228 to clarify that a person can be detained under Part 2 or, if aged under 16, the Mental Health Order, even if he or she is discharged under Part 10. <BR /> <BR />Amendment No 289 inserts new clause 230A, which contains additional powers for the review tribunal when considering the issue of detention under a public protection order. It allows the tribunal, where it has decided not to release a person, to recommend taking specified actions with a view to a future release, and further considering a person's case if those actions are not complied with. <BR /> <BR />Amendment No 293 inserts new clause 234A. This provision contains additional powers for the review tribunal when it is considering continued detention under a hospital direction or hospital transfer direction.”
“Amendment No 128 inserts new clause 121A, the effect of which is to ensure that, when an application is made to the court under Part 6, the Attorney General is notified of the application and can intervene in proceedings where he considers it appropriate to do so. That is a protective measure for those who lack capacity to make decisions that may result in Part 6 being utilised in their case. <BR /> <BR />Amendment No 133 amends clause 125(5)(a) and addresses the Committee's concerns that the Public Guardian can access healthcare records held by not only the health and social care trusts but agents and employees of the trusts. As a result of this amendment, the Public Guardian will be able to access records held by, for example, providers of domiciliary care and supported living arrangements.”
“Those new clauses will ensure that the tribunal adequately reviews the cases of all individuals subject to the Bill.”
“<BR /> <BR />I will now turn to the amendments relating to the oversight bodies. Amendment Nos 51 and 56, which create new clauses 48A and 51A, relate to the review tribunal. New clause 48A will introduce a referral mechanism to the tribunal for young people once they reach the age of 16. It will ensure that a young person's case will be referred to the tribunal if the detention was renewed under article 13 of the Mental Health (Northern Ireland) Order 1986 and a year has elapsed since the case was last considered by the tribunal. New clause 51A will provide an additional power for the review tribunal, when considering a person's case, to recommend the taking of specific actions and to allow it to further consider the case in the event that the recommendations are not complied with.”
“There is also the fundamental point that the Bill is about respecting people's decisions, even if unwise, provided they have the capacity to make them. To put it bluntly, if the donor has capacity and wishes to appoint an attorney who has been convicted of fraud, that is his or her prerogative, however unwise that decision might seem. In any event, there are already safeguards built into the lasting power of attorney system specifically to deal with situations in which there may be concerns about an attorney. For example, persons other than the donor can object to the registering of a lasting power of attorney on prescribed grounds. I believe that those safeguards are sufficient and proportionate. For those reasons, it is my view that amendment No 118 is insufficiently precise and unnecessary.”
“For all those reasons, I do not support this amendment to clause 98. <BR /> <BR />Amendment No 118 has also been tabled by Ms McCorley, Mr McCartney and Mr Lynch. It relates to clause 99, which sets out certain requirements for attorneys. For example, anyone who is bankrupt may not be appointed as a property and affairs attorney. The effect of the amendment would be to insert a new requirement that any person convicted of fraud be subject to a risk assessment for suitability for the post of attorney. <BR /> <BR />Again, there are difficulties with this amendment. For example, it raises a number of unanswered questions. Who or what body would undertake the assessment? What criteria would be applied to determine suitability? What would be the consequences of such a risk assessment?”
“I understand that possible argument, but the problem with it is twofold. First, the amendment would not have the desired effect. If the attorney is a relative or associate of the donor, the clause as amended would still allow the attorney to receive gifts. Secondly, donors making lasting powers of attorney are likely to appoint family members as their attorney. Therefore, to exclude that family member from receiving gifts on behalf of the donor just because they are acting as an attorney could have the perverse effect of deterring a donor from making that close family member an attorney. Furthermore, any concern regarding the potential to abuse that power is already addressed by the fact that the clause states that the gift must not be:”
“<BR /> <BR />I will now turn to amendment No 117, which has also been tabled by Ms McCorley and others. Clause 98 allows an attorney acting under a lasting power of attorney to make gifts to the donor's relatives or associates on customary occasions, such as birthdays, as long as the value of the gift is not unreasonable. The clause allows the attorney to be included in the list of persons who can receive gifts, so effectively the attorney could buy a gift for themselves. The effect of amendment No 117 would be to prohibit an attorney from being able to gift themselves. I am sure that the Members will clarify their intentions when speaking to this amendment. However, my assumption is that it has most likely been motivated by a concern that an attorney may abuse their power in some way.”
“I strongly caution the Chamber against supporting it today for two reasons. First, it is a rather crude attempt to extend to children a system predicated on the law on capacity and consent that applies to adults, with no consideration whatsoever of the implications of what the law says about children and decision-making. Those implications extend well beyond the scope of this Bill to other significant pieces of legislation, such as the Age of Majority Act (Northern Ireland) 1969. The second reason why I urge Members not to support the amendment is that work is under way within the Department of Finance and Personnel to examine those implications. The more prudent course of action would be to let that work conclude before the Chamber takes a vote on a matter of such importance.”
“The relevant amendments are amendment Nos 77, 123, 125, 139, 313, 324, 330 and 340. <BR /> <BR />At this point, I propose to move on to amendments relating to Part 5 of the Bill on lasting powers of attorney. I will return to the Committee's opposition to clause 110 and schedule 5, as well as amendment No 119, at the end of my remarks on this group. <BR /> <BR />Amendment No 116 has been tabled by Ms McCorley, Mr McCartney and Mr Lynch. Its effect would be to lower the age at which a person can execute a lasting power of attorney from 18 to 16. A lasting power of attorney is a legal document that gives an attorney the power to make decisions about the donor's care, treatment or finances when the donor has lost the capacity to do so. I will not leave any room for doubt about my stance on this amendment.”
“Amendment Nos 51, 56, 77, 116-119, 123, 125, 128, 133, 139, 287, 289, 293, 313, 324, 330, 340-342, 361-363, 486. <BR /> <BR />The third group of amendments relates to enduring powers of attorney, lasting powers of attorney and the oversight bodies. Amendment No 5 inserts a reference to "an enduring power of attorney" into the list of relevant people to be consulted as part of the best-interests determination. This amendment to clause 7 has been put forward with the agreement of the Committee, as noted in its report. Similar amendments adding reference to "an enduring power of attorney" to clauses, which, as introduced, provided the lasting power of attorney with a particular role but not the enduring power of attorney, are also proposed where appropriate throughout the Bill, as recommended by the Committee.”
“However, I was pleased to see and note that a BBC report over the weekend, which helped to spark some of this debate, showed that, of all regions of the United Kingdom, the only one to have increased expenditure on mental health in the past two years was Northern Ireland. We increased it by 1% last year and by around 2·5% this year. While that does not resolve all the problems and is not a full answer, it does show the commitment of me, this Department and the Executive to invest further in mental health because of the particular problems that we face in Northern Ireland, never mind the general problems that people in Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK are facing in respect of poor mental health.”
“The additional resources are very welcome. The Member will know that, in my position and in this Department, we welcome resources, wherever they come from. We are still analysing exactly what the Prime Minister means by an additional £1 billion and whether that is an additional sum or whether it is included in the £8 billion increase. I have seen one recent report that states that it is part of the overall £8 billion increase by the end of the decade. <BR /> <BR />I am not saying that we are absolutely where we need to be in our levels of expenditure in Northern Ireland. The Member is well versed in the acuity of the problem in Northern Ireland and some of the particular circumstances causing that, especially those related to our past.”
“I very much welcome the Prime Minister's announcement, not just because of the monetary aspect, which I will come back to, but because of the fact that someone as senior as the Prime Minister said what he said. I think that it is incredibly important that all of us in public life, particularly those in positions like the Prime Minister, talk about the importance of mental health — not versus physical health but alongside it — and the impact that poor mental health can have on one's physical health.”
“I do not have the information related to the first question. I suspect that that may be because analysis is still going on to make sure that, if we say that something is the case, it absolutely is the case. That way, we will not scare people in Northern Ireland unnecessarily. <BR /> <BR />We have to be very sensitive of the need to provide timely and accurate information. Everybody in the system is open and honest about the fact that there are issues with H1N1 — swine flu — but the vaccination programme that we have in place is the best defence against that. That is why we procure so many doses of the vaccine each year and why vaccination is promoted so heavily. We encourage so many people to have the vaccination to act as a defence against influenza, of whatever type it might be.”
“There have, of course, been some issues and problems, and, without being able to speak authoritatively about every case, many of those will involve people who have underlying health conditions that mean that the vaccination has not been able to work in the full way that we had hoped that it would.”
“I thank the Member for his question. It is a bit like the question that Mr Ross asked, in that there is concern among our community when we hear some of the stories and about some of the deaths possibly connected to a virus. In this case, the virus is what is colloquially referred to as swine flu. <BR /> <BR />During the 2015-16 flu season, there have been 303 lab-confirmed cases of seasonal flu in Northern Ireland, with 239 of them being the H1N1 strain. The main defence in place for seasonal flu, including the H1N1 strain, is the annual vaccination programme. We procured 675,000 doses of the vaccine in Northern Ireland this year. Protection against H1N1 is contained within that seasonal flu vaccination.”
“<BR /> <BR />That fits in with the question that Mr Lyttle asked about the independent care sector and the pressures that it is facing. That is why I am keen to support, bolster and ensure the stability of that sector so that we can use it to alleviate some of the pressures that our emergency departments and our hospitals in general are facing.”
“This year, the pressure that was quite acute was that of the "back end", as the Member described it. <BR /> <BR />People are getting treated quite quickly in many instances. I sat and reviewed the website that updates the times that it takes for people to get treated over the Christmas period, and it was interesting to see that, in many cases, the times taken for people to be seen were quite short. Therefore, looking at it superficially, you would say that there should not have been a problem in the emergency department. The problem was coming from the fact that people could not leave and get the care package that they required or get a bed in the hospital. We have identified that as a problem, and it is something that we are going to have to address next year.”
“I always listen to the experiences of people on the front line. That is certainly the message that I received in Antrim when I was there in January and from talking to two other emergency departments about the pressures that they are facing. I was in the emergency department in the South West Acute Hospital on Friday and received a similar message. Looking back over our performance in the past number of years, particularly around this time of the year when there is a spike in activity, I can say that our emergency departments have been able to cope with the range of pressures that they have been facing. However, different, broad problems appeared in each year that we sought to address in the subsequent year through funding and various innovations.”
“It is far from perfect, and they are under pressure. That reflects a pressure right across the service. In the last five years, there has been an increase of nearly 14% in unplanned admissions across Northern Ireland. Places like Antrim Area Hospital have perhaps borne the brunt of that. In recognition of that, I have invested an additional £8 million in winter pressures this year. A share of that — over £1 million — will have gone to the Northern Trust to deal with the pressures that it faces. I hope that, in spite of the pressures that it is facing, it continues with the improvements that it has made in recent times.”
“I echo what the Member said about the dedication of the staff in Antrim Area Hospital. I visited Antrim Area Hospital's ED during the week of very high pressures on the service at the start of the year. I noticed that, although it was incredibly busy, the staff were deeply committed to what they were doing, really dedicated to their work and absolutely in control of a very difficult situation. I commend them for the work that they put in not just over the Christmas or early new year period, when it is always very busy, but the whole year. <BR /> <BR />There have been issues in the past at Antrim Area Hospital, but I recognise the efforts that have been put in by the trust under new leadership. I have every faith in that leadership and in the work that it is doing. It is slowly but surely starting to turn the situation around.”
“There is no joy to be had, whether you are at the top or the bottom of that league table, because of the individual tragedies that each of them adds up to. Some in the media did not reflect on Northern Ireland's particular circumstances. I do not want to invite upon the House another debate like the one that we had last Wednesday night, but it has been recognised by many midwives, in some of the comments that they made in the press, that we are not comparing like with like when we look at Northern Ireland stillbirth figures because of issues around termination and abortion in Northern Ireland.”
“There are particular pressures on the health and social care system that make it difficult to get to that level of efficiency, but, as I said in response to Mr Easton, I hope that some of the changes and reforms that we envisage through the work of the panel will allow us to produce an even more efficient system that allows us to get up towards the level of efficiency that the independent sector provides. <BR /> <BR />The issue of stillbirths has been in the media for the last number of days. It has not been treated in all areas of the media with the sensitivity that it should be. Every stillbirth, whatever the circumstances, is a tragedy for the family and parents involved. Some sort of contrived league table has been produced by some in the media.”
“I will deal with the first points first and then come on to the other issue. Sometimes, there is a misconception: people who are opposed to using the independent sector will use words like "profiteering" as if it is a bad thing to make a profit in this society. However, in these circumstances, the independent sector is not paid any more for an operation than what it would cost to provide the same operation in the health and social care system. That important point is very often missed or ignored by some who criticise the use of the independent sector. Clearly, the independent sector has a much more efficient model.”
“It has been awarded 27,000 contracts for outpatient appointments and 8,000 inpatient appointments. Patients have now been referred for all of those, so all those appointments are being taken up. Many people have been seen already, some are being seen and some will be seen in the weeks ahead. Whatever people might think about using the independent sector, the fact is this: without that additional capacity, over 30,000 people who required outpatient appointments or inpatient procedures would not have been able to get them. I do not think, in the circumstances in which we find ourselves, that it would have been acceptable to do anything other than use the independent sector to deliver those much-needed appointments for over 30,000 people in Northern Ireland.”
“I thank the Member for his question. Some in the House and in this country turn their nose up at the use of the independent sector to help to deal with issues such as our unacceptably long waiting lists. I know that the Member is not one of those, and neither am I. As I said in response to an earlier question, we have been using the £40 million that we got through the November monitoring round to treat 60,000 to 70,000 more patients in a range of ways. Obviously, we want to maximise the output from inside the health and social care sector. There will be 9,000 more outpatient appointments, around 1,000 more inpatient day cases, 15,000 more allied health professional physiotherapy and occupational health appointments and 13,000 more diagnostic tests. <BR /> <BR />We have, however, been relying quite significantly on the independent sector.”
“I know that that will not solve all the problems, but, hopefully, it will bring further stability to the market, deal with some issues, particularly staff retention, and move us to a more stable position in the future.”
“It is critical that, as well as looking at statutory residential care homes and doing the work that I outlined in my initial response, we take some time to look at the independent sector and what is happening there. That is why I commissioned work to look at the market stability of the sector and any threats to it. That will examine a range of issues including nursing and the overall viability of many of those businesses. I have responded to those pressures in recent times by announcing a further investment of £1·6 million in the care sector in this financial year. That goes in two ways: a 2% increase in the rates paid to domiciliary care companies and £11 a week more for every resident who has been placed in a home by a trust.”
“There were quite a few questions asked in that one. The Member beside him might welcome the fact that I am on to question 5, although I am now being held back by the seven or eight questions asked by Mr Lyttle. <BR /> <BR />The last issue — how it directly affects individuals — is probably the most important one. Our trusts have done quite good work in coordinating with residents and their families to ensure that their transition to new accommodation is smooth. Everyone has now moved from one of the homes in the Member's constituency — I think it is the Victoria Park Care Home — to appropriate accommodation. I am sure that nobody wanted to move away so I am unwilling to say that they were content to move, but everybody has found appropriate accommodation. Work is ongoing in many of the other homes as well.”
“<BR /> <BR />The terms of reference for the review are as follows: to re-examine the proposals for closures in the light of the emerging challenges facing the adult care sector in particular; to consider issues around capacity, accessibility, quality and sustainability, which will include reconsideration of the local needs assessment exercises that informed the original proposals for change; to consider whether sufficient independent sector capacity can be identified to ensure a secure supply of appropriate places on a regional basis to meet demand; to consider the timing of any proposed closures, with particular reference to the current perceived instability in the market; and, finally, to consider whether there is a requirement to review the current position on admissions as a means of addressing current challenges in the care sector.”