Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.-(1) This Order may be cited as the Health Authorities Act 1995 (Rectification of Transitional Arrangements) Order 2000 and shall come into force on 21st February 2000.

(2) In this Order, unless the context otherwise requires-

"the 1977 Act" means the National Health Service Act 1977(2);

"the 1995 Act" means the Health Authorities Act 1995(3);

"fund-holding practice" means a fund-holding practice recognised under sections 14 to 17 of the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990(4) as they were in force before 1st October 1999;

"the Pharmaceutical Services Regulations" means the National Health Service (Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 1992(5);

"Transitional Provisions Order" means the Health Authorities Act 1995 (Transitional Provisions) Order 1996(6).

Amendment of Transitional Provisions Order

2.-(1) With effect from 1st April 1996-

(a)In Part III of Schedule 1 (relevant new authorities for old authorities whose districts or localities comprise or form part of the area of only one new authority) to the Transitional Provisions Order, the entries set out in Schedule 1 to this Order shall be omitted;

(b)For Part III of Schedule 2 (relevant new authorities whose districts or localities comprise or form part of the area of more than one new authority) to the Transitional Provisions Order shall be substituted the entries set out in Schedule 2 to this Order, which include in particular, an entry for Bromley Family Health Services Authority.

(2) The Transitional Provisions Order shall be deemed always to have had effect as amended by this article.

Consequences of Rectification

3.-(1) Where, on or after 1st April 1996, as a result of any of the relevant defects, anything has been done by or in relation to an acting authority(7), or a person of any description identified by reference to an acting authority, it is to be treated, subject to paragraph (2), as though it had been done by or in relation to the proper authority(8), or a person of that description identified by reference to the proper authority.

(2) Where, on or after 1st April 1996, as a result of the relevant defects, any acting authority has made-

(a)any payment to a Part II practitioner(9), or

(b)any deduction from remuneration paid to a Part II practitioner,

the payment or deduction shall be treated as though it had been done by the acting authority in the exercise by them of the function on behalf of the proper authority.

(3) Where as a result of any of the relevant defects, an application in accordance with regulation 4(2), or a notification in accordance with regulation 4(10) of the Pharmaceutical Services Regulations, has been made to a Health Authority and as a result-

(a)the application has been granted under regulation 4(3)(a) of those Regulations, or

(b)the original application has been amended under regulation 4(10) of those Regulations.

but the premises at which the pharmaceutical services were originally, or were originally to be, provided and the premises at which the services are, or are to be, provided ("the new premises") are not both in the area of that Health Authority, the application shall be deemed to have been granted in respect of the new premises, by the Health Authority in whose area the new premises are situated, in consequence of an application under regulation 4(2)(a) of those Regulations.

(4) Where-

(a)on 1st April 1996, because of any of the relevant defects, a Part II practitioner was treated by virtue of the Transitional Provisions Order as included in a Part II list(10) (the "relevant list"),

(b)by virtue of this order, he is treated as having been included on that date in one or more other Part II lists but not in the relevant list,

(c)on or after that date, he provided services and a requirement of his providing those services was his inclusion in the relevant list, and

(d)since 1st April 1996 he has neither been added to the relevant list in accordance with Regulations made pursuant to section 29 of the 1977 Act, nor removed from that list,

the Part II practitioner shall be treated as having been included in the relevant list with effect from the date on which he first provided services as mentioned in sub-paragraph (c).

Outstanding court proceedings

4. Where immediately before the coming into force of this Order, any court proceedings were brought against an acting authority in relation to anything done by or in relation to that acting authority, and as a result of this Order, that action is to be treated as having been done by or in relation to the proper authority, the acting authority shall be treated as though they had acted on behalf of the proper authority.

Outstanding representations to Tribunal

5.-(1) Where before the coming into force of this Order, representations had been made to the Tribunal constituted under section 46 of the 1977 Act by an acting authority about a Part II practitioner on their Part II list, but the matter had not been finally disposed of on the date that this Order comes into force, the acting authority shall be treated as though they had acted on behalf of the proper authority, and shall continue to so act if the proper authority requests them to do so until the final disposal of the matter.

(2) Where the proper authority request the acting authority to continue to act on its behalf, the proper authority shall notify the Tribunal and the practitioner about whom representations had been made.

Exception for fund-holding practices

6. Where immediately before the coming into force of this Order, a Health Authority (not being the relevant Health Authority as defined by sections 15(1B) and (1C) of the 1977 Act(11) as they were in force before 1st October 1999) acted as the relevant Health Authority for a member or former member of a fund-holding practice as a result of any of the relevant defects, Article 3 shall not apply and they shall continue to be treated as the relevant Health Authority in connection with the application of any provision relating to a fund-holding practice.

article 2(1)

SCHEDULE 1OMMISSIONS FROM PART III OF SCHEDULE I

article 2(1)

SCHEDULE 2SUBSTITUTED PART III OF SCHEDULE 2

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

This Order is made under section 44 of the Health Act 1999. It amends the Health Authorities Act 1995 (Transitional Provisions) Order 1996 so as to rectify certain defects in that Order with retrospective effect. The effect of this is that where one Health Authority ("the acting Health Authority") acted in relation to practitioners providing services under Part II of the National Health Service Act 1977 ("Part II practitioners"), where another Health Authority ("the proper Health Authority") should have acted, the proper Health Authority will be treated as though it had been the acting one.

There are exceptions to this general rule in the case of payments or deductions made by the acting Health Authority in relation to Part II practitioners, which will be treated as though they had been made on behalf of the proper Health Authority by the acting Health Authority. There is also an exception for certain specified applications by pharmacies to Health Authorities for relocation of, or additional premises, and for Part II practitioners who provided services on the basis that they were on the appropriate Health Authority list.

Article 4 provides that where court proceedings have been brought against an acting authority but not disposed of before the coming into force of this Order, that authority will be treated as though it had acted on behalf of the proper authority. Article 5 provides that where an acting authority had made representations to the Tribunal constituted under section 46 of the 1977 Act and the matter not finally disposed of before the coming into force of this Order, it will be treated as though it had acted on behalf of the proper authority. It shall continue to do so if so requested by the proper authority, and the proper authority must then notify the Tribunal and the practitioner against whom representations have been made, of the request.

Article 6 provides that Article 3 does not apply in the case of fund-holding practices in connection with any provision relating to a fund-holding practice.