Health and Social Care Bill: Report stage day four

Members of the House will finish detailed examination of Clause 22 which looks at the NHS Commissioning Board's duties.

Members will also consider the establishment and duties of clinical commissioning groups and debate conflicts of interest whilst always putting the interests of patients first.

Other amendments look at the provision of training to healthcare professionals which 'pay regard' to the Health Education England reports and future funding of water companies operating fluoridation schemes.

After Clause 51, Amendment 142 looks at adding in a new clause which covers the 'scope of patient and public involvement'.

• Marshalled list of Amendments
• Watch live on Parliament TV from 3pm
• Read the transcript in Today in the Lords from 6pm

Health and Social Care Bill: Key areas

• Establishes an independent NHS Board to allocate resources and provide commissioning guidance.
• Increases GPs’ powers to commission services on behalf of their patients.
• Strengthens the role of the Care Quality Commission.
• Develops Monitor, the body that currently regulates NHS foundation trusts, into an economic regulator to oversee aspects of access and competition in the NHS.
• Cuts the number of health bodies to help meet the government's commitment to cut NHS administration costs by a third, including abolishing Primary Care Trusts and Strategic Health Authorities.

Catch up on the Health and Social Care Bill so far

• Urgent question asked in the House of Commons 
• Report stage: Day three
• Report stage: Day two
• Report stage: Day one
• Latest version of the bill at the end of committee stage (22 December 2011)
• Committee stage Lords news round up
• Progress of the Health and Social Care Bill

The House of Lords Constitution Committee report

The Constitution Committee published a follow-up report calling for changes to the Health and Social Care Bill to ensure that ministerial responsibility to Parliament and legal accountability for the NHS are not diluted.

• Read the House of Lords Constitution Committee report

What is the report stage?

Report stage in the chamber gives all members of the Lords further opportunity to consider all amendments (proposals for change) to a bill. It usually starts at least 14 days after committee stage. It can be spread over several days (but usually fewer days than at committee stage).

Before report stage takes place

• The day before report stage starts, amendments are published in a Marshalled List – in which all the amendments are placed in order.
• On the day, amendments on related subjects are grouped together and a list (“groupings of amendments”) is published.

What happens at report stage?

• Detailed line by line examination of the bill continues.
• Votes can take place and any member can take part.

After report stage - third reading

• If the bill is amended it is reprinted to include all the agreed amendments.
• The bill moves to third reading for the final chance for the Lords to debate and amend the bill.
• More about third reading.

Further information

Detailed line by line examination of the separate parts (clauses and schedules) of a bill takes place during report stage.

• Passage of a bill: report stage

Find out more about watching House of Lords debates.

• Visiting Parliament: Attend debates and meetings