Decision details

Safe Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Bill: evidence session 1

Decision Maker: Plenary - Fourth Assembly, Health and Social Care Committee - Fourth Assembly

Status: Recommendations approved

Is Key decision?: Yes

Purpose:

An Assembly Member Bill, introduced by Kirsty Williams AM. Kirsty Williams AM was successful in a legislative ballot on 11 December 2013, and given leave to proceed with her Bill (PDF, 69KB) by the Assembly on 5 March 2014. The Business Committee has remitted the Bill to the Health and Social Care Committee.

 

During Stage 2 proceedings on 25 November 2015, the Health and Social Care Committee agreed to amend the short title of the Bill from Safe Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Bill to Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Bill (amendment 35).

 

About the Bill

The stated purpose of the Bill is to require health service bodies to make provision for safe nurse staffing levels, and to ensure that nurses are deployed in sufficient numbers to:

  • enable the provision of safe nursing care to patients at all times;
  • improve working conditions for nursing and other staff; and
  • strengthen accountability for the safety, quality and efficacy of workforce planning and management.

 

Further detail about the Bill can be found in its accompanying Explanatory Memorandum (PDF, 981KB).

 

Current Stage

The Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Act 2016 became law in Wales on 21 March 2016.

 

Record of Passage in the National Assembly for Wales

The following table sets out the dates for each stage of the Bill’s passage through the National Assembly for Wales.

Stage

Documents

Bill introduced: 1 December 2014

Safe Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Bill, (PDF, 69KB) as introduced

 

Explanatory Memorandum (PDF, 981KB)

 

Presiding Officer’s Statement: 1 December 2014 (PDF, 115KB)

 

Business Committee reports on the timetable for consideration of the Bill:

Report of 1 December 2014 (PDF, 47KB)

Report of 5 March 2015 (PDF, 57KB)

Report of 16 July 2015 (PDF, 103KB)

 

Plenary statement: Introduction of the Safe Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Bill: 3 December 2014

 

Legislative Glossary - Safe Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Bill (PDF, 132KB) (Welsh language version only)

 

Research Service Bill Summary (PDF, 310KB)

 

Stage 1: Committee considerations of general principles

Consultation

The Committee issued a call for evidence, which closed on 22 January 2015.

 

Committee dates

The Health and Social Care Committee considered the Bill on the following dates:

 

Date and Agenda

Purpose of meeting

Transcript

Senedd.TV

10 December 2014

Consideration of approach to Stage 1 Scrutiny (private)

 

 

15 January 2015

Kirsty Williams AM (Member in charge of the Bill)

15 January 2015, Transcript

View meeting of 15 January 2015

29 January 2015

Oral evidence session

29 January 2015, Transcript

View meeting of 29 January 2015

12 February 2015

Oral evidence session

12 February 2015, Transcript

View meeting of 12 February 2015

25 February 2015

Oral evidence session

25 February 2015, Transcript

View meeting of 25 February 2015

5 March 2015

Minister for Health and Social Services

Oral evidence session

5 March 2015, Transcript

View meeting of 5 March 2015

19 March 2015

Kirsty Williams AM (Member in charge of the Bill)

19 March 2015, Transcript

View meeting of 19 March 2015

25 March 2015

Consideration of the key issues (private)

 

 

23 April 2015

Consideration of the draft report (private)

 

 

 

The Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee considered the Bill on the following date:

Date and Agenda

Purpose of meeting

Transcript

Senedd.TV

2 February 2015

Kirsty Williams AM (Member in charge of the Bill)

Minister for Health and Social Services

2 February 2015, Transcript

View meeting of 2 February 2015

 

The Finance Committee  considered the Bill on the following date:

Date and Agenda

Purpose of meeting

21 January 2015

Initial consideration of the Bill (private)

 

 

Committee reports

Health and Social Care Committee Stage 1 report (PDF, 933KB)

 

Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee report (PDF, 313KB)

 

Stage 1: Debate in Plenary on general principles

A debate took place in Plenary on 3 June 2015. The motion to agree the general principles of the Bill was agreed.

Financial Resolution

A Financial Resolution was agreed in Plenary on 3 November 2015.

 

The Health and Social Care Committee received the following correspondence regarding the financial resolution:

 

Stage 2: Committee consideration of amendments

Stage 2 began on 4 June 2015.

 

The Health and Social Care Committee agreed on Thursday 19 November 2015 under Standing Order 26.21, that the order of consideration for Stage 2 proceedings will be: Sections 2 - 5; Section 1; Long title.

 

Stage 2 consideration took place in Committee on Wednesday 25 November 2015.

 

Marshalled list of amendments: 25 November 2015 (PDF, 156KB)

Groupings of amendments: 25 November 2015 (PDF, 90KB)

Concise minutes: 25 November 2015

 

Notice of amendments

Notice of Amendments: 24 June 2015 (PDF, 75KB)

Notice of Amendments: 1 July 2015 (PDF, 53KB)

 

Notice of Amendments: 11 September 2015 v2 (PDF, 111KB)

Welsh Government - Purpose and effect table: 11 September 2015 v2 (PDF, 159 KB)

 

Notice of Amendments: 16 November 2015 v3 (PDF, 89KB)

Notice of Amendments: 18 November 2015 (PDF, 65KB)

Combined notice of amendments - 19 November 2015 (PDF, 151KB)

 

As the Notices of Amendments of 16 and 18 November contain a number of amendments to Mark Drakeford AM’s amendment 29, a line-numbered copy of amendment 29 (PDF, 76KB) has been produced to aid proceedings.

 

Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Bill: as amended at Stage 2 (PDF, 69KB)

(Amendments to the Bill since the previous version are indicated by sidelining in the right margin.)

 

Explanatory Memorandum revised after Stage 2 (PDF, 1MB)

 

Printing changes to the Bill as amended at Stage 2 (PDF, 118KB)

 

The Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Bill – Summary of changes at Stage 2

 

Stage 3: Plenary consideration of amendments

Stage 3 consideration and disposal of amendments took place in in Plenary on 3 February 2016.

 

Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Bill (as amended at Stage 3) (PDF, 73KB)

(Amendments to the Bill since the previous version are indicated by sidelining in the right margin.)

 

Amendments considered at Stage 3

Marshalled list of amendments - 3 February 2016 (PDF, 106KB)

Groupings of amendments – 3 February 2016 (PDF, 60KB)

 

Notices of amendments

Notice of amendments: 8 December 2015 (PDF, 63KB)

Notice of amendments: 6 January 2016 (v2) (PDF, 85KB)

 

Notice of amendments: 11 January 2016 (v2) (PDF, 67KB)

Welsh Government - Purpose and effect table: 11 January 2016 (PDF, 132KB)

 

Notice of Amendments: 12 January 2016 (v2) (PDF, 61KB)

 

Notice of Amendments: 25 January 2016 (PDF, 60KB)

Welsh Government - Purpose and effect table: 25 January 2016 (PDF, 87KB)

 

Notice of Amendments: 26 January 2016 (v2) (PDF, 57KB)

 

Combined Notices of Amendments: 8 December 2015 to 26 January 2016 (PDF, 106KB)

 

Printing changes to the Bill as amended at Stage 3 (PDF, 118KB)

 

Stage 4: Passing of the Bill in Plenary

The Bill was agreed by the Assembly in accordance with SO 12.36 on 10 February 2016.

 

Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Bill, as passed (PDF, 71KB)

Printing changes to the Bill as passed (PDF, 115KB)

 

Nursing Staffing Levels (Wales) Bill, as passed (Crown XML)

Post-stage 4

The four week period of intimation has ended.

 

The Attorney General (PDF, 205KB), Counsel General (PDF, 179KB) and Secretary of State for Wales (PDF, 237KB) wrote to the Chief Executive and Clerk of the Assembly to advise that they would not be referring the Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Bill to the Supreme Court under Sections 112 or 114 of the Government of Wales Act 2006.

Date of Royal Assent

Royal Assent [PDF, 197KB] was given on 21 March 2016.

 

Contact information

 

This bill has been remitted to the Health and Social Care Committee

 

Clerk: Llinos Madeley

Phone: 0300 200 6565

E-mail: SeneddHealth@Assembly.Wales

Decisions:

7.1 The Member in Charge of the Bill (Kirsty Williams) responded to questions from Members.

7.2 The Member in Charge agreed to supply the Committee with an outline of which of the safe nursing indicators outlined in section 3(5) of the Safe Nurse Staffing Levels (Wales) Bill were derived from the CNO’s guidelines, the NICE guidelines and which were included as a result of the responses to her consultations on the Bill.

Publication date: 20/01/2015

Date of decision: 15/01/2015

Decided at meeting: 15/01/2015 - Health and Social Care Committee - Fourth Assembly

Accompanying Documents: