To ask the Secretary of State for Health what relevance (a) existing and (b) proposed European Union directives have to her Department’s decision to require independent midwives to have professional indemnity insurance. (141081)

[holding answer 7 June 2007]: European directive 2005/36 on the recognition of professional qualifications allows (but does not require) regulatory bodies to demand evidence of indemnity insurance from incoming European migrants, provided that they demand the same information from United Kingdom nationals. The directive is not therefore directly relevant to Government policy, which is to include provision for compulsory indemnity cover as a condition of registration in legislation for each profession, as the opportunity arises in wider legislative change.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 23 May 2007, Official Report, columns 1317-18W, on midwives: insurance, if she will clarify the information included in the White Paper. (141083)

[holding answer 7 June 2007]: The White Paper “Trust, Assurance and Safety - The Regulation of Health Professionals in the 21^st Century” states in paragraph 6.3

“In response to a government initiative, indemnity insurance is also becoming a requirement''.

Government policy is to include provision for compulsory indemnity cover as a condition of registration in legislation for each profession, as the opportunity arises in wider legislative change.

The introduction of compulsory professional indemnity cover for midwives will require secondary legislation. A three-month public consultation will form part of that legislative process. No specific date for this has yet been set.