Health (Tobacco, Nicotine etc. and Care) (Scotland) Act 2016

27 Care provider offence

(1) A care provider commits an offence if—

(a) an individual who has the care of another individual by virtue of being part of the care provider’s arrangements ill-treats or wilfully neglects that individual,

(b) the care provider’s activities are managed or organised in a way which amounts to a gross breach of a relevant duty of care owed by the care provider to the individual who is ill-treated or neglected, and

(c) in the absence of the breach, the ill-treatment or wilful neglect would not have occurred or would have been less likely to occur.

(2) An individual is “part of a care provider’s arrangements” where the individual—

(a) is not the care provider, but

(b) provides adult health care or adult social care as part of the adult health care or adult social care provided or arranged for by the care provider,

including where the individual is not the care provider but supervises or manages individuals providing adult health care or adult social care as described in paragraph (b) or is a director or similar officer of an organisation which provides adult health care or adult social care as described there.

(3) In this section—

(a) a “relevant duty of care” means a duty owed in connection with providing, or arranging for the provision of, adult health care or adult social care,

(b) a breach of a relevant duty of care is a “gross” breach if the conduct alleged to amount to the breach falls far below what can reasonably be expected of the care provider in the circumstances.

(4) A care provider who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable—

(a) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum,

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine.