A bill has been bought before the House of Commons to help NHS charities move towards independence, including ensuring Great Ormond Street Hospital continues to be able to claim royalties from Peter Pan.
The NHS (Charitable Trusts etc) Bill, a private member's bill, was bought before the House of Commons last week for a second reading by Wendy Morton, Conservative MP for Aldridge-Brownhills with the aim of removing the Secretary of State for Health’s power to appoint trustees for NHS bodies in England.
It will also amend the Copyright, Designs and Patent Act 1988 to ensure that by moving to independence, GOSH will not lose out on the royalties it is due from the work of J.M. Barrie.
Speaking before the House of Commons, Morton said that removing the power of the Secretary of State for Health to appoint trustees to NHS charities would “make good a commitment” made by the government in 2014.
In the UK, NHS charities are regulated under charity law but are also linked to NHS bodies and as a result are bound by NHS legislation as well. Currently most have their associated hospital trusts as corporate trustees, and others have trustees appointed by the Health Secretary.
NHS charities are therefore distinct from independent charities, as they are not established solely under charity law.
There are around 250 such organisations operating in the UK who, in the financial year 2014-15, raised £345m between them to support patients and staff.
GOSH Children’s Charity has begun a move towards becoming an independent charity but it requires specific legislation to provide the new, independent charity with the same rights to the royalties from the novel Peter Pan - bequeathed to the charity by author J.M. Barrie.
Alistair Burt, a minister at the Department of Health, said that independence for NHS charities was an important part of building public trust in organisations and would also reduce “administrative burden, costs and calls on charity staff time” before commending the Bill to the House.
Morton said her proposed Bill had the support of GOSH as well as “NHS charities more generally”. Should the Bill pass, Morton expects it to come into force on 1 April 2018, to give a period of grace to NHS bodies and charities.
