• Home
• About Us
• Current issue
• Editor's Blog
• Events
• For Advertisers
• News
• Product News
• Product Zone
• Resources
• Subscribe For Free

Unison taking legal action over white paper

Released 25/08/2010

Lack of consultation is "unlawful", says union

Unison has begun legal action against the Secretary of State for Health for refusing to hold a public consultation on the radical overhaul of the NHS.

The UK's largest public service union claims instructions issued by NHS chief executive Sir David Nicholson to GPs to start actioning the proposals straight away were unlawful.

Responding, Nicholson said implementation would be held off until the consultation process had been completed, but that consultation would be limited to how - rather than if - the restructuring should go ahead.

Unison argues this lack of proper consultation is illegal because:

• Some of the white paper's content gives rise to "a legitimate expectation that the proposals would be subject to public consultation"
• The agreement between the Department of Health, NHS employers and trade unions "expressly commits the Secretary of State to early discussion and dialogue on policy and priorities"
• The public has a right to be consulted under the NHS Constitution
• All NHS bodies are legally bound to consult on proposed changes to their services under the NHS Act.

Karen Jennings, Unison's head of health, said: "The white paper contains sweeping changes to the NHS and how it should be run. The NHS Constitution enshrines the principle that the public, staff and unions have an absolute right to be consulted, not only on how the proposals are to be implemented, but also whether they should go ahead in the first place.

"The DH's refusal to recognise this clear and important legal duty leaves us no option but to issue legal proceedings as a matter of urgency."

In response, a DH spokesperson said: "The Government has already launched public consultations, on specific elements of the white paper, and further documents will be published this year. David Nicholson has written to encourage the NHS to begin locally led consultations and take first steps on the implementation of the white paper, without pre-empting the wider consultation.

"The Department's position is that its decisions on consultation are lawful and it will be defending the claim by Unison."

See more news stories like this