Health Bill [HL]

I speak to Amendment 10, which follows on from the amendment moved by the noble Earl, Lord Howe, and is really a development of the word ““readily””. We agree with the noble Lord, Lord Walton, that the constitution should be readily available. If we are to have this constitution, it is important that it is in a format that is accessible to all people, whichever language they speak and regardless of whether they are physically challenged in any way. Presumably it will have to be in Braille and in a format that is easily read and understood by people with learning disabilities too. If it is to be available, it must be readily available to all those groups and must therefore be in every health service premises. I wondered, rather whimsically, whether, on qualifying, all NHS staff—doctors, in particular—should drop the Hippocratic oath and learn to recite the NHS Constitution before being allowed to practise in the NHS. Alternatively, as used to be the case in some churches in this country where the Ten Commandments were written on the walls, perhaps in each waiting room of every health service establishment the constitution could be available in several languages. It would give people something to do other than look at the goldfish; it would be an interesting diversion. I think that these amendments are very important if the constitution is to mean anything. We are not suggesting that it should be chained to the wall—again, an ecclesiastical reference. It is not a chained Bible but it should be readily available in a form that is understood by everyone and it should be in every NHS premise.