Section 13 - Payments by NHS bodies towards certain local authority expenditure
54.Section 13 allows for an NHS body to make payments to a local authority towards certain of the local authority’s functions. The payments must be in accordance with any conditions prescribed in regulations by the Scottish Ministers, such as requirements on accounting and auditing or requirements for associated outcome agreements. The relevant local authority functions are those which are prescribed in regulations and which, in the opinion of the NHS body, fall into categories specified in paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of subsection (1). Such payments can be towards revenue or capital expenditure and can only be paid after consultation with the local authority. “NHS body” and “local authority” are defined in section 22.
55.The powers which section 13 provides to NHS bodies have some similarity to those under section 16A of the 1978 Act. That section also allows for payments by NHS bodies to local authorities for certain functions, but the new powers can potentially apply to a broader range of functions. The new section 13 is not intended to replace or supersede powers under section 16A of the 1978 Act. It is one element of a package of measures put forward in this Act to remove barriers to joint working between NHS Scotland and local authorities.