Health and Social Care Legislation
Regulations governing the NHS, healthcare provision, social care services, public health measures, and medical standards.
The Scotland Act 1998 (Modification of Schedule 5) Order 2026
This Order, made under the Scotland Act 1998, temporarily modifies Schedule 5, which defines reserved matters, to grant the Scottish Parliament limited legislative competence concerning the identification and regulation of substances and devices used in assisted dying for terminally ill adults.
The legislative power conferred is conditional: Scottish Ministers can identify substances/devices via subordinate legislation only with the Secretary of State’s agreement, while the Secretary of State retains power to regulate those items without Scottish Minister agreement.
These exceptions apply only to Scottish Acts resulting from Bills passed before 7 May 2026, and the Scottish Parliament cannot use this limited power to mandate the content of the regulation or impose duties on the Secretary of State.
The Public Service Pensions Revaluation Order 2026
This statutory instrument, made by the Treasury, sets the specific percentage increases to be used for revaluing accrued pension rights within certain public service pension schemes for the period between 1st April 2025 and 31st March 2026, establishing an increase in prices of 3.8 per cent and an increase in earnings of 4.8 per cent, and specifies the dates the Order comes into force across different UK jurisdictions and schemes.
The Government Resources and Accounts Act 2000 (Estimates and Accounts) (Amendment) Order 2025
This Order, made by HM Treasury under the Government Resources and Accounts Act 2000, revises the list of designated central government bodies for the purpose of calculating supply estimates and resource accounts for the financial year ending March 31, 2026.
Specifically, it substitutes the entire Schedule of the principal Order (The Government Resources and Accounts Act 2000 (Estimates and Accounts) Order 2025) with an updated list organized by government department, adding, renaming, or removing various public sector bodies.
The Health and Care Act 2022 (Consequential Amendments) Regulations 2025
The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care made these Regulations under the powers granted by the Health and Care Act 2022 to make consequential amendments to the Down Syndrome Act 2022, which apply to England and Wales.
Specifically, the Regulations update the Schedule of the Down Syndrome Act 2022 by substituting references to the former National Health Service Commissioning Board with 'NHS England' and references to a 'clinical commissioning group' with 'an integrated care board', reflecting structural reforms enacted in the 2022 Act.
The Human Medicines (Authorisation by Pharmacists and Supervision by Pharmacy Technicians) Order 2025
This Order in Council amends several UK laws, including the Medicines Act 1968 and the Human Medicines Regulations 2012, to expand the roles of registered pharmacy technicians by enabling pharmacists to authorize them to perform and supervise tasks related to the preparation, assembly, dispensing, and final supply of medicinal products.
The changes primarily apply to Great Britain initially and establish a framework of authorization, supervision, and professional accountability, including specific provisions for hospital aseptic facilities and controlled drug handling, while also introducing provisions for the delegation of final supply of checked and bagged medicines across the entire UK.
The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (Counselling Services) Regulations 2025
These Regulations, enacted by the Secretary of State under powers granted by the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, formally define what constitutes a 'counselling service' for the purposes of restricting when authorised persons, including police bodies, can request confidential information related to those services, specifying that these services offer psychological or emotional support to improve a service user's mental health, and setting a commencement date of January 12, 2026, primarily for England and Wales.
The Police Act 1997 (Criminal Records) (Amendment) Regulations 2025
These Regulations, made under powers in the Police Act 1997, amend existing criminal records regulations from 2002 and 2009 to introduce two new purposes for obtaining enhanced criminal record certificates.
First, they include assessing an applicant's suitability to hold a licence under the Pedicabs (London) Act 2024.
Second, they allow for enhanced checks, including barring list checks, when assessing a registered health care professional’s suitability to work with children or vulnerable adults if they are employed or contracted by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.
The National Health Service (Procurement, Slavery and Human Trafficking) Regulations 2025
These Regulations mandate that public bodies must assess the modern slavery risk associated with procuring goods or services for the health service in England, requiring them to take reasonable, proportionate steps to address or eliminate those risks during procurement design, contract management, and throughout the lifecycle of framework agreements and dynamic markets, with guidance to be issued by NHS England.