Health Service Commissioners Act 1993

Section 1(3).

SCHEDULE 1E+W+S The Commissioners

Appointment of CommissionersE+W+S

1(1)Her Majesty may by Letters Patent appoint a person to be a Commissioner and a person so appointed shall hold office during good behaviour.

(2)A person appointed to be a Commissioner—

(a)may at his own request be relieved of office by Her Majesty, or

(b)may be removed from office by Her Majesty in consequence of Addresses from both Houses of Parliament;

and shall in any case vacate office on completing the year of service in which he attains the age of sixty-five.

(3)Her Majesty may declare the office of Commissioner to have been vacated if satisfied that the person appointed to be the Commissioner is incapable for medical reasons of performing the duties of his office and of requesting to be relieved of it.

Appointment of acting CommissionersE+W+S

2(1)Where any of the offices of Commissioner becomes vacant, Her Majesty may, pending the appointment of the new Commissioner, appoint a person under this paragraph to act as that Commissioner at any time during the period of twelve months beginning with the date on which the vacancy arose.

(2)A person appointed under this paragraph shall hold office during Her Majesty’s pleasure and, subject to that, shall hold office—

(a)until the appointment of the new Commissioner or the expiry of the period of twelve months beginning with the date on which the vacancy arose, whichever occurs first, and

(b)in other respects, in accordance with the terms and conditions of his appointment which shall be such as the Secretary of State may, with the approval of the Treasury, determine.

(3)A person appointed under this paragraph shall, while he holds office, be treated for all purposes except those of paragraphs 4 to 10 as the Commissioner.

Ineligibility of certain persons for appointmentE+W+S

3(1)A person who is a member of a relevant health service body shall not be appointed a Commissioner or acting Commissioner; and a person so appointed shall not, during his appointment, become a member of such a body.

(2)For this purpose a “relevant health service body” means—

(a)in relation to the Health Service Commissioner for England or for Wales or a person appointed to act as such, a body mentioned in section 2(1) or (2), and

(b)in relation to the Health Service Commissioner for Scotland or a person appointed to act as such, a body mentioned in section 2(3) or any management committee of such a body.

SalariesE+W+S

4There shall be paid to the holder of the office of a Commissioner the same salary as if he were employed in the civil service of the State in such appointment as the House of Commons may by resolution from time to time determine; and any such resolution may take effect from the date on which it is passed or from such other date as may be specified in it.

5E+W+SThe salary payable to a holder of the office of a Commissioner shall be abated by the amount of any pension payable to him in respect of any public office in the United Kingdom or elsewhere to which he has previously been appointed or elected.

6(1)Where a person holds—

(a)the office of Parliamentary Commissioner, and

(b)one or more of the offices of Health Service Commissioner,

he shall, so long as he does so, be entitled only to the salary pertaining to the office of Parliamentary Commissioner.

(2)Where a person holds two or more of the offices of Health Service Commissioner he shall, so long as he does so, be entitled only to the salary pertaining to such one of those offices as he selects.

Pensions and other benefitsE+W+S

7E+W+SSchedule 1 to the M1Parliamentary Commissioner Act 1967 (which relates to pensions and other benefits) has effect with respect to persons who hold or have held office as a Commissioner as it has effect with respect to persons who hold or have held office as the Parliamentary Commissioner.

8E+W+SIn computing the salary of a former holder of the office of Commissioner for the purposes of Schedule 1 to the 1967 Act, there shall be disregarded—

(a)any abatement of that salary under paragraph 5,

(b)any temporary abatement of that salary in the national interest, and

(c)any voluntary surrender of that salary in whole or in part.

9(1)In this paragraph, “relevant office” means the office of Parliamentary Commissioner or any of the offices of Health Service Commissioner.E+W+S

(2)The Treasury may by regulations provide that Schedule 1 to the Parliamentary Commissioner Act 1967 shall have effect, in relation to persons who have held more than one relevant office, with such modifications as it considers necessary in consequence of those persons having held more than one such office; and different regulations may be made in pursuance of paragraph 4 of Schedule 1 to the 1967 Act in relation to different relevant offices.

(3)A person shall not be entitled to make simultaneously different elections in pursuance of paragraph 1 or 2 of Schedule 1 to the 1967 Act in respect of different relevant offices.

(4)Where a person has made or is treated as having made an election in pursuance of paragraph 1 or 2 of Schedule 1 to the 1967 Act in respect of any relevant office, he shall be deemed to have made the same election in respect of all such other offices to which he is, or is subsequently, appointed.

(5)No account shall be taken for the purposes of Schedule 1 to the 1967 Act of a period of service in a relevant office if salary in respect of the office was not paid for that period.

(6)Regulations under this paragraph may make such incidental or supplementary provision as the Treasury considers necessary.

(7)Regulations under this paragraph shall be made by statutory instrument which shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

10E+W+SIn any case where a person makes an election under paragraph 2(1)(a) of Schedule 1 to the M2Parliamentary Commissioner Act 1967 (as substituted by Part II of Schedule 4 to the M3Judicial Pensions and Retirement Act 1993) so that Schedule 1 to the 1967 Act continues to have effect in relation to him as it did before the coming into force of Part II of Schedule 4 to the 1993 Act, this Schedule shall have effect—

(a)as if in paragraph 7 the words “hold or” (in both places) and in paragraph 9(3) and (4) the words “or 2” (in both places) were omitted, and

(b)as if for the reference in paragraph 9(2) to paragraph 4 of Schedule 1 to the 1967 Act there were substituted a reference to paragraph 8 of that Schedule.

Staff and advisersE+W+S

11(1)A Commissioner may appoint such officers as he may determine with the approval of the Treasury as to numbers and conditions of service.

(2)The Health Service Commissioner for Wales shall include among his officers such persons having a command of the Welsh language as he considers are needed to enable him to investigate complaints in Welsh.

12Any functions of a Commissioner under this Act may be performed by any officer of the Commissioner authorised by him for that purpose, or by any officer so authorised of another Commissioner or the Parliamentary Commissioner.

13(1)To assist him in any investigation a Commissioner may obtain advice from any person who, in his opinion, is qualified to give it.E+W+S

(2)A Commissioner may pay to any such person from whom he obtains advice under this paragraph such fees or allowances as he may determine with the approval of the Treasury.

Financial provisionsE+W+S

14The expenses of a Commissioner under this Act—

(a)shall be paid out of money provided by Parliament, and

(b)shall not exceed such amount as the Treasury may sanction.

15E+W+SAny salary, pension or other benefit payable by virtue of paragraph 2 and paragraphs 4 to 9 shall be charged on and issued out of the Consolidated Fund.