The National Health Service (Pharmaceutical Services) (Wales) Regulations 2020

PART 3 Appeals against decisions for inclusion in or amendment to pharmaceutical lists and dispensing doctor lists

Right of appeal to the Welsh Ministers

6.—(1) For applications to which paragraph 8(1)(a) and (c) of Schedule 3 apply, the persons entitled to submit a notice of appeal against the decision of the Local Health Board to the Welsh Ministers are—

(a) the applicant;

(b) any of the following who made representations on the application to the Local Health Board under paragraph 8(3) of Schedule 3—

(i) any person included in a pharmaceutical list,

(ii) any person who has been granted preliminary consent for inclusion in a pharmaceutical list,

(iii) any provider of local pharmaceutical services under a pilot scheme, and

(iv) where the premises specified in an application are in a controlled locality, any person who is a provider of primary medical services or who is included in the dispensing doctor list.

(2) In the case of an application determined under regulation 22 (applications involving a change of ownership), the persons entitled to submit a notice of appeal to the Welsh Ministers are—

(a) the applicant, and

(b) any of the following who were, under paragraph 14(2) of Schedule 3, given notice of the Local Health Board’s decision on the application—

(i) any person included in a pharmaceutical list,

(ii) any person who has been granted preliminary consent for inclusion in a pharmaceutical list,

(iii) any provider of local pharmaceutical services under a pilot scheme, and

(iv) where the premises specified in the application are in a controlled locality, any person who is a provider of primary medical services or who is included in the dispensing doctor list.

(3) A notice of appeal is valid if—

(a) it is submitted by a person with the right of appeal under sub-paragraph (1) or (2),

(b) it is sent to the Welsh Ministers within 30 days of the date on which notice of the decision being appealed was sent by the Local Health Board to the person making the appeal, and

(c) it contains a statement of the grounds of appeal which do not amount to a challenge to the legality or reasonableness of a pharmaceutical needs assessment, or to the fairness of the process by which the Local Health Board undertook that assessment.

Notification of appeals

7.—(1) The Welsh Ministers must, on receipt of a notice of appeal submitted under paragraph 6(1), send a copy of the notice to—

(a) the applicant, if the applicant has not submitted the notice of appeal,

(b) the Local Health Board, and

(c) those notified of and who made representations on the application under paragraph 8(3) of Schedule 3.

(2) The Welsh Ministers must, on receipt of a notice of appeal submitted under paragraph 6(2), send a copy of the notice to—

(a) the applicant, if the applicant has not submitted the notice of appeal,

(b) the Local Health Board, and

(c) those given notification of the Local Health Board’s decision under paragraph 14(2) of Schedule 3.

(3) The persons to whom a copy of the notice of appeal is sent under this paragraph must, at the same time, be informed by the Welsh Ministers—

(a) that they may, within 30 days of the date on which the notice of appeal was sent to them, make representations on the appeal in writing to the Welsh Ministers,

(b) of the circumstances in which the Welsh Ministers may require an oral hearing to be held, and

(c) where the Welsh Ministers intend to consider two or more appeals together and in relation to each other, of that intention.

Decision on appeals

8.—(1) On determining an appeal made under paragraph 6, the Welsh Ministers must either—

(a) allow the appeal, or

(b) confirm the decision of the Local Health Board.

(2) In the case where the premises specified in an application that is subject to appeal are in a controlled locality, the Welsh Ministers—

(a) may, where the Local Health Board, on determining the application, considered whether to impose conditions under paragraph 13 of Schedule 3 or regulation 17(6)(b), themselves consider whether to impose conditions to postpone, for such period as they think fit, the making or termination of such arrangements, or

(b) must, where the Local Health Board on determining the application has not considered whether to impose conditions under paragraph 13 of Schedule 2 or regulation 17(6)(b) either—

(i) themselves consider whether to impose conditions, or

(ii) remit the question to the Local Health Board for determination.

(3) The Welsh Ministers must after reaching a decision on an appeal, including the imposition of conditions under sub-paragraph (2), give written notice of their decision together with the reasons for it to those persons sent a copy of the notice of appeal under paragraph 7.

Effect of decisions by the Welsh Ministers

9.  For the purposes of these Regulations, the Welsh Ministers’ decision becomes the Local Health Board’s decision on the matter (but no further appeal to the Welsh Ministers on that decision is possible, unless the Welsh Ministers’ decision is overruled by a court).