Section 12: Treatment time guarantee: suspension
36.Subsections (1) to (3) provide that, in exceptional circumstances, the Scottish Ministers may, by direction, suspend the treatment time guarantee for a period of up to 30 days. If the Scottish Ministers consider it is necessary to extend the direction for a period of more than 30 days, or consider it is necessary from the outset to suspend the guarantee for longer than 30 days, an order must be laid before Parliament by virtue of subsections (4) and (5). Subsection (5) sets out the emergency affirmative procedure for laying such an Order before Parliament. Subsections (6) and (7) allow for negative parliamentary procedure to be used when an order under subsection (4) is revoked.