The next item, therefore, is the Regulated Services (Service Providers and Responsible Individuals) (Wales) (Amendment) (Coronavirus) Regulations 2020, and I call on the Deputy Minister for Health and Social Services to move the motion—Julie Morgan.

Motion NDM7327 Rebecca Evans

To propose that the Senedd, in accordance with Standing Order 27.5:

1. Approves that the draft The Regulated Services (Service Providers and Responsible Individuals) (Wales) (Amendment) (Coronavirus) Regulations 2020 is made in accordance with the draft laid in the Table Office on 6 May 2020.

Motion moved.

Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. These regulations have been developed to mitigate the effects of the coronavirus on adult social care in three main ways. Firstly, they address the potential need for expansion of the sector by allowing the speedy establishment of emergency provision under the aegis of statutory commissioners of social care in a variety of settings. Secondly, they address the potential need to ease the recruitment of staff by relaxing some of the evidence-holding requirements currently on providers. And thirdly, they permit care homes, with the approval of the regulator, to bring currently unoccupied rooms into use as shared bedrooms.

The changes apply to adult residential settings and adult domiciliary support services only. To deliver the first purpose, certain services, created specifically to respond to COVID-19, are exempted from registration with Care Inspectorate Wales. They may be established more quickly and in a wider range of premises than would be possible for a regulated service. As they will not have a regulator's oversight, only services delivered by or on behalf of commissioners of care and support, local authorities and local health boards, with providers who are already registered with Care Inspectorate Wales or the Care Quality Commission, are eligible. Commissioners will be responsible for the quality of care and support provided and can be inspected in this regard by the regulator, Care Inspectorate Wales or Healthcare Inspectorate Wales. This is an important safeguard for anyone cared for on a temporary basis by these services.

The second purpose relates to holding of evidence about new staff members. Presently, regulations contain detailed requirements regarding evidence on matters such as qualifications. As the circumstances of the pandemic may make it difficult to source the full range of evidence, the amendment allows these requirements to be discharged by providing as much evidence as is reasonably practicable. The requirement to make checks remains unaltered, and the evidence must still be made available to the regulator as normal. The changes do not affect the requirements around holding evidence from the Disclosure and Barring Service checks.

Finally, the third purpose relates to the sharing of rooms. Current residents should never feel pressured to share a room, so the amendment only allows a care home to bring rooms that are currently unoccupied into use as additional shared rooms. Approval will rest with Care Inspectorate Wales and will always be considered with regard to the best interests of the residents.

These changes are short term, responsive to the current emergency and will be reversed in a measured way that gives the sector time to adjust as soon as it is responsible to do so. So, I ask Members to support the motion.

Some of the premises that could be used for emergency residential services may be unlikely to meet the standard required to register with Care Inspectorate Wales under the 2016 Act. So, what assurances can you give me that the providers fitting the exception will be subject to appropriate regulation and inspection?

Also, according to CIW, they are not undertaking routine inspections, and, when the pandemic is over, will not be considering retrospective actions. So, how will this impact on the safety of residents and the identification of wilful neglect or, indeed, deliberate harm?

Now, as you know, Minister, some services are experiencing difficulties with recruitment, retention, equipment and funding. So, have you considered the negative impact new premises could have on existing problems?

During the Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee, it was noted that the regulations do not appear to apply to the private sector that is not providing services for the public sector. Another question: why is that the case?

And finally, a respondent to the consultation urged that pre-employment checks were essential to safeguarding individuals. What assessment has been made of the risk of relaxing these rules and can you confirm that regulation 7 will not undermine the legal requirement that adults agree to share a room and such a move may be consistent with their well-being? Thank you.

Deputy Minister to respond to the debate—or the contribution.

I'd like to thank Janet Finch-Saunders for those comments, and I'd just like to reiterate that these are temporary measures that are taken in an emergency situation. They will not be permanent measures, and the points that she made have all been carefully considered.

In terms of one of the last points she made, about whether it applies to private provision, I'd like to inform her that the provision around shared rooms applies to private, local authority and third sector adult care homes equally. So, they do apply to private provision. Also, the easements around holding evidence apply to the appointment of private, third sector and local authority domiciliary and residential care staff, and the only distinction is made in relation to emergency COVID-19 provision. Here, we considered it absolutely essential that there be statutory oversight of the provision. Private providers can deliver the commissioned provision. So, I hope that's cleared that up about the private provision.

I would like also to emphasise, in terms of the people who are being recruited, that they are still subject to Disclosure and Barring Service checks. The responsibility is on the care home owner to ensure that suitable people are recruited. But I think the Member will accept that, in these extraordinary circumstances, there has to be a degree of flexibility to ensure that we are able to expand the provision if we have to in order to cope with this extraordinarily difficult time.

I thank the Deputy Minister.

The proposal, then, is to agree the motion. Does any Member object? [Objection.] Yes, I can see an objection, and therefore I'll defer the vote on this until voting time.

Voting deferred until voting time.