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Em/Ria Guidance PUBLIC HEALTH (WALES) BILL Explanatory Memorandum Incorporating the Regulatory Impact Assessment and Explanatory Notes June 2015 1 PUBLIC HEALTH (WALES) BILL Explanatory Memorandum to the Public Health (Wales) Bill This Explanatory Memorandum has been prepared by the Department for Health and Social Services of the Welsh Government and is laid before the National Assembly for Wales. Member’s Declaration In my view, the provisions of the Public Health (Wales) Bill introduced by me on 8 June 2015, would be within the legislative competence of the National Assembly for Wales. Mark Drakeford AM Minister for Health and Social Services Assembly Member in charge of the Bill 8 June 2015 2 CONTENTS List of abbreviations PART 1 – Explanatory Memorandum 1. Description 2. Legislative background 3. Purpose and intended effect of the legislation 4. Consultation 5. Power to make subordinate legislation 6. Regulatory Impact Assessment PART 2 – Regulatory Impact Assessment 7. Options, costs and benefits 8. Competition assessment and specific impacts 9. Post implementation review Annex A – Explanatory Notes Annex B – Summary Costs tables Annex C – Table of derivations Annex D – Summary table of existing and planned tobacco / e-cigarette control measures 3 List of Abbreviations ACAS - Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service BCAP – Broadcast Committee of Advertising Practice BMA – British Medical Association BTA – British Toilet Association CAP – Committee of Advertising Practice CIEH – Chartered Institute of Environmental Health CPD – Continuing Professional Development DfT – Department for Transport ECHR – European Convention on Human Rights ECITA - Electronic Cigarette Industry Trade Association EHO – Environmental Health Officer ENDS – Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems ENNDS - Electronic Non-nicotine Delivery Systems FCTC – Framework Convention on Tobacco Control FPN – Fixed Penalty Notice FTE – Full Time Equivalent GOWA – Government of Wales Act 2006 LHB – Local Health Board MHRA – Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulators Agency MUP – Minimum Unit Pricing for alcohol NICE – National Institute for Health and Care Excellence NIDs – Nicotine Inhaling Devices NRT – Nicotine Replacement Therapy OFT – Office of Fair Trading 4 PNA – Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment PSSRU – Personal Social Services Research Unit QALY – Quality Adjusted Life Years RAN – Remedial Action Notice RIA – Regulatory Impact Assessment RPO – Restricted Premises Order RSO – Restricted Sales Order RYO – ’Roll Your Own‘ (tobacco) SME – Small and Medium-sized Enterprise UNCRC – United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child VOT – Value of time WHO – World Health Organisation WLGA – Welsh Local Government Association WNHSS – Welsh Network of Healthy School Schemes 5 Part 1 – Explanatory Memorandum 1. Description 1. The Public Health (Wales) Bill (‘the Bill’) utilises legislation as a mechanism for improving and protecting the health and well-being of the population of Wales. It comprises a set of provisions in discrete areas of public health policy. 2. While a number of the issues addressed in the Bill are already well established, the Bill also responds to new and emerging health challenges. Taken together the provisions are intended to have a cumulative positive benefit for the population of Wales and seek to put in place conditions which are conducive to good health, in which harms to health can be prevented. 3. In summary the Bill proposes to introduce changes that:- Place restrictions on the use of tobacco and nicotine inhaling devices (NIDs) such as electronic cigarettes in enclosed and substantially enclosed public and work places, and give the Welsh Ministers a regulation-making power to extend the restrictions to certain open spaces; Provide for the creation of a national register of retailers of tobacco and nicotine products; Provide the Welsh Ministers a regulation-making power to add to the offences which contribute to a Restricted Premises Order (RPO) in Wales; Prohibit the handing over of tobacco and/or nicotine products to a person under the age of 18; Provide for the creation of a mandatory licensing scheme for practitioners and businesses carrying out ’special procedures’, namely acupuncture, body piercing, electrolysis and tattooing; Introduce a prohibition on the intimate piercing of persons under the age of 16 years; Change the arrangements for determining applications for entry onto the pharmaceutical list of Local Health Boards (LHBs), to a system based on the pharmaceutical needs of local communities; and Require local authorities to prepare a local strategy to plan how they will meet the needs of their communities for accessing toilet facilities for public use. 4. The issues covered in the Bill are relevant both to physical and mental health and well-being, and as such, references to public health throughout the Bill and Explanatory Memorandum should be considered as encompassing both of these aspects. 6 2. Legislative Background 5. Section 107 of the Government of Wales Act 2006 (‘GOWA 2006’) provides legislative competence for the National Assembly for Wales (‘the Assembly‘) to make laws for Wales known as Acts of the Assembly. 6. Section 108 of GOWA 2006 provides that a provision of an Act of the Assembly is within the Assembly’s legislative competence if it relates to one or more of the subjects listed under any of the headings in Part 1 of Schedule 1 of that Act and does not fall within any of the exceptions specified in that Part of the Schedule (whether or not under that heading or under any of those headings), and it neither applies otherwise than in relation to Wales nor confers, imposes, modifies or removes (or gives power to confer, impose, modify or remove) functions exercisable otherwise than in relation to Wales. 7. The provisions of the Bill relate to the following subjects: Subject 9 ‘Health and Health Services’: “Promotion of health. Prevention, treatment and alleviation of disease, illness, injury, disability and mental disorder. Control of disease. Family planning. Provision of health services, including medical, dental, ophthalmic, pharmaceutical and ancillary services and facilities. Clinical governance and standards of health care. Organisation and funding of national health service.” Subject 12 ‘Local Government’: “…Powers and duties of local authorities and their members and officers…” Subject 15 ‘Social Welfare’: “…Protection and well-being of children (including adoption and fostering) and of young adults…” 8. The above subjects provide the National Assembly with the competence to make the provisions contained in the Bill. Part 2 of the Bill contains provisions which remove pre-commencement functions of a Minister of the Crown. Those provisions will be within the Assembly’s legislative competence if the Secretary of State consents to the provisions under Part 3 of Schedule 7 to GOWA 2006. Discussions with the UK Government are ongoing with a view to obtaining that consent. The Welsh Government anticipates that discussions on consent issues will be concluded during Stage 1. 7 3. Purpose and intended effect of the legislation Context 9. The health of the population of Wales is continuing to improve. In general, people are living longer and enjoy better health than ever before, and more can be done to deal with health problems. Life expectancy continues to improve and the gap between males and females is decreasing, although the gap between the most and least deprived areas remains a concern. Figure 11 10. Whilst health is improving, it is also clear that Wales faces a number of specific and significant health challenges. These range from overarching demographic challenges such as an ageing population, high levels of chronic disease and persisting inequalities in health, to more discrete challenges posed by lifestyle choices and contemporary developments within society. 11. The Welsh Government’s priorities for public health are clear and have been set out in key policy documents including Our Healthy Future2, the national public health framework, and the Fairer Health Outcomes For All3 1 Chief Medical Officer for Wales Annual Report 2013-14: Healthier, Happier, Fairer - http://gov.wales/topics/health/cmo/publications/annual/2014-report/?lang=en 2 Our Healthy Future – Technical Working Paper (2009) – Welsh Government 3 Fairer Health Outcomes For All (2011) – Welsh Government. http://gov.wales/topics/health/publications/health/reports/fairer/?lang=en 8 strategic action plan for reducing inequalities in health. The Welsh Government has ambitions to accelerate the pace of improvement in the health and well-being of people in Wales, and for improvements to be shared more equally across the population. In realising these ambitions the Welsh Government has signalled its ongoing commitment to taking action in a range of ways, including through legislation, to help further improve and protect health for everyone. 12. The quickly developing nature of society means that it is ever more important for the Welsh Government to keep pace with emerging public health priorities. In particular it is increasingly crucial that preventative approaches drive actions, including legislative action, in order to place sustainability at the heart of the public health agenda. 13. Legislation has historically played an important role in tackling public health issues. It has proven to be one of the most powerful tools available to governments in responding to health challenges, both old and new. Legislation in areas as varied as the ban
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