Attached is a copy of the Secretary Of State's letter to Beverly Malone following 'settlement' of the RCN's Judicial Review. Whilst it would be wrong to suggest that this in any way provides the reassurance our members need in relation to the very real threat that Primary Care services will be fragmented following reconfiguration of PCTs and SHAs, the letter contains an important paragraph that should be highlighted to PCT Boards:
"I would, therefore, like to set out clearly and unequivocally that we do not have a policy requirement or timetable for PCTs to divest themselves of provision." This was reiterated at a recent meeting of the Social Partnership Forum where Patricia Hewitt admitted that the instructions sent out by Nigel Crisp in Commissioning a Patient-led NHS were wrong.
The crunch issue for Amicus members is PCTs may decide to divest themselves of staff delivering clinical services on the basis that: "Any such decisions would be driven locally following our White Paper deliberations".
It is important to get clarity about what and when the White Paper may support and the Amicus Parliamentary Lobby on 10 January is our chance to explain to MPs what is at stake.
If you have any question arising from this edition of Reps Direct please contact your Regional Officer.