The draft NHS Constitution sets out a range of rights and national health service pledges relating to access, quality and safety.
It is our intention to legislate to provide a legal duty on NHS organisations to take account of the Constitution in the decisions they make. Similarly, the government of the day will be obliged by law to renew the NHS Constitution every 10 years.
Registration requirements will be set in regulations and will list the essential safety and quality requirements that providers must meet in order to be registered to provide health and adult social care services. The registration system will sit as a key part of a wider quality improvement framework that encourages excellent care.
The draft NHS Constitution and the Government's proposals are open for public consultation until 17 October 2008. The details, including how to feed in views, may be found at www.dh.gov.uk/consultations.