National Health Service Reorganisation Act 1973

2 General powers and duties of Secretary of State to provide services

(1) Without prejudice to his powers apart from this subsection, the Secretary of State shall have power—

(a) to provide such services as he considers appropriate for the purpose of discharging any duty imposed on him by the Health Service Acts; and

(b) to do any other thing whatsoever which is calculated to facilitate, or is conducive or incidental to, the discharge of such a duty.

(2) It shall be the duty of the Secretary of State to provide throughout England and Wales, to such extent as he considers necessary to meet all reasonable requirements.—

(a) hospital accommodation;

(b) other accommodation for the purpose of any service provided under the Health Service Acts;

(c) medical, dental, nursing and ambulance services;

(d) such other facilities for the care of expectant and nursing mothers and young children as he considers are appropriate as part of the health service;

(e) such facilities for the prevention of illness, the care of persons suffering from illness and the after-care of persons who have suffered from illness as he considers are appropriate as part of the health service in place of arrangements of a kind which immediately before the passing of this Act it was the function of local health authorities to make in pursuance of section 12 of the [1968 c. 46.] Health Services and Public Health Act 1968 ;

(f) such other services as are required for the diagnosis and treatment of illness ;

and regulations may provide for the making and recovery of charges in respect of facilities designated by the regulations as facilities provided in pursuance of paragraph (d) or (e) of this subsection.

(3) The functions exercisable by local health authorities and the Greater London Council by virtue of sections 21 and 24 to 27 of the principal Act and sections 10 and 11 of the said Act of 1968 (which relate to the provision of certain health services by those bodies) shall cease to be exercisable by those bodies ; but nothing in this section affects the provisions of Part IV of the principal Act (which relates to arrangements with practitioners for the provision of medical, dental, ophthalmic and pharmaceutical services).