56.This section enables the Scottish Ministers by order to make incidental and other ancillary provision for the purposes of the Act or in consequence of it. The power can, for instance, be used to make an express saving provision for existing pilot schemes under the 1997 Act for personal medical services, and to make appropriate provision to secure that such schemes continue to work. (See the entry above for section 3 of the Act.) The power also enables appropriate provision to be made to ensure that existing GP practices providing general medical services under section 19 arrangements have an automatic right to transfer to a new general medical services contract. The power can also be used to take account of any changes to the Act’s references to Northern Ireland that may be required as a consequence of changes to the law in Northern Ireland which correspond to the changes set out in the Act.
57.The amendments and repeals in the schedule which is introduced by this section are consequential on the provisions of the Act.
58.This section allows the Scottish Ministers to bring the provisions of the Act (apart from sections 7 and 9, which come into force on Royal Assent) into force by commencement order. Different dates may be appointed in the order for different provisions. The section is in the usual terms.