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Inquiries | |
132 Inquiries: CHAI | |
(1) The Secretary of State may cause an inquiry to be held into any matter | |
connected with the exercise by the CHAI of any of its functions. | |
(2) The Assembly may cause an inquiry to be held into any matter connected with | 5 |
the exercise by the CHAI of any of its functions in relation to any health care | |
provided by or for a Welsh NHS body. | |
(3) Before an inquiry is begun, the Secretary of State or (in the case of an inquiry | |
under subsection (2)) the Assembly may give a direction that it be held in | |
private. | 10 |
(4) Where no such direction has been given, the person holding the inquiry may if | |
he thinks fit hold it, or any part of it, in private. | |
(5) Subsections (2) to (5) of section 250 of the Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) | |
(powers in relation to local inquiries) apply in relation to an inquiry under this | |
section as they apply in relation to a local inquiry under that section | 15 |
(6) The report of the person holding the inquiry is to be published, unless the | |
Secretary of State or (in the case of an inquiry under subsection (2)) the | |
Assembly considers that there are exceptional circumstances which make | |
publication inappropriate. | |
(7) Publication under subsection (6) is to be in such manner as the Secretary of | 20 |
State or (in the case of an inquiry under subsection (2)) the Assembly considers | |
appropriate. | |
133 Inquiries: CSCI | |
(1) The Secretary of State may cause an inquiry to be held into any matter | |
connected with the exercise by the CSCI of any of its functions (under any | 25 |
enactment). | |
(2) Before an inquiry is begun, the Secretary of State may give a direction that it be | |
held in private. | |
(3) Where no such direction has been given, the person holding the inquiry may if | |
he thinks fit hold it, or any part of it, in private. | 30 |
(4) Subsections (2) to (5) of section 250 of the Local Government Act 1972 (powers | |
in relation to local inquiries) apply in relation to an inquiry under this section | |
as they apply in relation to a local inquiry under that section | |
(5) The report of the person holding the inquiry is to be published, unless the | |
Secretary of State considers that there are exceptional circumstances which | 35 |
make publication inappropriate. | |
(6) Publication under subsection (5) is to be in such manner as the Secretary of | |
State considers appropriate. | |
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Information | |
134 Disclosure of information obtained by CHAI | |
(1) This section applies to information which— | |
(a) has been obtained by the CHAI on terms or in circumstances requiring | |
it to be held in confidence; and | 5 |
(b) relates to and identifies an individual. | |
(2) Subject to section 135, a person is guilty of an offence if he knowingly or | |
recklessly discloses information to which this section applies during the | |
lifetime of the individual to which it relates. | |
(3) A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable— | 10 |
(a) on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 | |
months or to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum, or to both; | |
(b) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding | |
two years or to a fine or to both. | |
(4) For the purposes of subsection (1)(b), information obtained by the CHAI, or | 15 |
any person authorised by it, is to be regarded as identifying an individual if | |
that individual can be identified— | |
(a) from that information, or | |
(b) from that information and from other information obtained by the | |
CHAI or any person authorised by it. | 20 |
135 Section 134: defence | |
(1) It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under section 134 to prove | |
that at the time of the alleged offence— | |
(a) any of the circumstances in subsection (2) applied in relation to the | |
disclosure in question; or | 25 |
(b) he reasonably believed that they applied. | |
(2) The circumstances referred to in subsection (1) are that— | |
(a) the disclosure was made in a form in which the individual to whom it | |
relates is not identified; | |
(b) the disclosure was made with the consent of the individual to whom | 30 |
the information relates; | |
(c) the information disclosed had previously been lawfully disclosed to the | |
public; | |
(d) the disclosure was made under or pursuant to regulations under | |
section 111 (complaints about health care); | 35 |
(e) the disclosure was made in accordance with any enactment or court | |
order; | |
(f) the disclosure was necessary or expedient for the purposes of | |
protecting the welfare of any individual; | |
(g) the disclosure was made to any body or person in circumstances where | 40 |
it was necessary or expedient for the person or body to have the | |
information for the purpose of exercising his or its functions under any | |
enactment. | |
(3) It is also a defence for a person charged with an offence under section 134 to | |
prove that the disclosure was made— | 45 |
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(a) for the purposes of facilitating the exercise of any functions of the CHAI | |
(under any enactment); | |
(b) in connection with the investigation of a criminal offence (whether or | |
not in the United Kingdom); | |
(c) for the purpose of criminal proceedings (whether or not in the United | 5 |
Kingdom). | |
(4) For the purposes of subsection (2)(a), information disclosed by a person is not | |
to be regarded as being in a form in which an individual is not identified if the | |
individual can be identified— | |
(a) from that information, or | 10 |
(b) from that information and from other information disclosed by the | |
CHAI, by any person authorised by it or by any of its members or | |
employees. | |
136 Information obtained by CHAI: supplementary | |
(1) The CHAI may, subject to section 134, use any information it obtains, or | 15 |
documents or records produced to it, in the course of exercising any of its | |
functions for the purposes of any of its other functions. | |
(2) Where subsection (3) applies, the CHAI may disclose any information obtained | |
by it notwithstanding any rule of common law which would otherwise | |
prohibit or restrict the disclosure. | 20 |
(3) This subsection applies where— | |
(a) in the case of information relating to an individual, the circumstances | |
in paragraph (a) or (b) of subsection (2) of section 135 apply in relation | |
to the disclosure; | |
(b) in any case, the circumstances in any of paragraphs (c) to (g) of that | 25 |
subsection apply in relation to the disclosure; or | |
(c) in any case, the disclosure is made as specified in paragraph (a), (b) or | |
(c) of subsection (3) of that section. | |
(4) Subsection (4) of section 135 applies for the purposes of subsection (3)(a) above. | |
137 Information obtained by CSCI: supplementary | 30 |
The CSCI may use any information it obtains, or documents or records | |
produced to it, in the course of exercising any of its functions for the purposes | |
of any of its other functions. | |
Wales: supplementary | |
138 Annual reports of Assembly | 35 |
As soon as possible after the end of each financial year of the Assembly, the | |
Assembly must make and publish a report or reports on— | |
(a) what it has found during the year in the course of exercising— | |
(i) its functions under Chapter 4 and 6 of this Part (other than any | |
function of making regulations); | 40 |
(ii) its functions exercisable by virtue of section 5(b) and 8(1) to (3) | |
of the Care Standards Act 2000 (c. 14); | |
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(b) the way in which the Assembly has during the year exercised those | |
functions. | |
139 Use by Assembly of information | |
(1) The Assembly may use any information it obtains, or documents produced to | |
it, in the course of exercising any function of the Assembly referred to in any | 5 |
paragraph of subsection (2) for the purposes of any function of the Assembly | |
referred to in any other paragraph of that subsection. | |
(2) The functions of the Assembly referred to in subsection (1) are— | |
(a) its functions under Chapter 4 of this Part; | |
(b) its functions under Chapter 6 of this Part; | 10 |
(c) its functions exercisable by virtue of section 5(b) or 8(1) to (3) of the Care | |
Standards Act 2000 (c. 14); | |
(d) its functions under section 80 of the Children Act 1989 (c. 41). | |
(3) References to functions in subsection (2) do not include functions of making | |
regulations. | 15 |
140 Inquiries: Wales | |
(1) This section applies where, under section 35 of the Government of Wales Act | |
1998 (c. 38), the Assembly causes an inquiry to be held into any matter relevant | |
to the exercise of— | |
(a) its functions under Chapter 4 or 6 of this Part (other than any function | 20 |
of making regulations); | |
(b) its functions under section 87 of the Children Act 1989. | |
(2) Before an inquiry is begun, the Assembly may give a direction that it be held | |
in private. | |
(3) Where no such direction has been given, the person holding the inquiry may if | 25 |
he thinks fit hold it, or any part of it, in private. | |
(4) The report of the person holding the inquiry is to be published, unless the | |
Assembly considers that there are exceptional circumstances which make | |
publication inappropriate. | |
(5) Publication under subsection (4) is to be in such manner as the Assembly | 30 |
considers appropriate. | |
141 Co-operation between Assembly and CHAI | |
(1) The Assembly and the CHAI must co-operate with each other where it seems | |
to them appropriate to do so for the efficient and effective discharge of any | |
relevant function. | 35 |
(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), a relevant function is— | |
(a) any function of the CHAI under Chapter 3 of this Part; | |
(b) any function of the Assembly under Chapter 4 or 6 of this Part (other | |
than any function of making regulations); | |
(c) any function of the CHAI under the Care Standards Act 2000; | 40 |
(d) any function of the Assembly exercisable by virtue of section 5(b) or | |
8(1) to (3) of the Care Standards Act 2000. | |
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