Community Care (Delayed Discharges) Bill

- Financial incentive for councils to move patients from acute beds to more appropriate care, as quickly as possible- Local authorities and the NHS to work together to determine the services needed by an individual- Simplify the existing system by removing the power of local authorities to charge for certain community equipment services and intermediate care- Promote the independence of older people by facilitating their move from an acute hospital bed to a "more homely environment" as quickly as possible

Health (Wales) Bill

- Community Health Councils (CHCs) to become more transparent with an extended role- Wales Centre for Health (WCH) set-up to operate a forum for advice, research and support in training- Health Professions Wales (HPW) established with broad remit, including existing non-regulatory functions of the abolished Welsh National Board for Nursing Midwifery and Health Visiting

Health and Social Care Bill

- Best performing NHS hospitals to be allowed to set-up as Foundation Trusts, hospitals "free" from Whitehall control- An independent Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection set-up for both NHS and private healthcare.- Commission for Social Care Inspection set-up- General Medical Services legislation revised to underpin a new GP contract- PCTs to become responsible for commissioning NHS dental services- NHS enabled to recover treatment costs where people claim and receive personal injury compensation-Welfare food scheme reformed

On the Community Care Bill

"The plans to penalise local authorities who do not get people out of hospital beds as quickly as possible is a short sighted measure that puts the system before older people. Better care and support at home or in care homes must be made available and older people given more, not less choice over the sort of care they get. Without even piloting such an approach, social services face being forced to concentrate their resources on getting people out of hospital without giving people choice or proper support at home,"-Gordon Lishman, Director General, Age Concern (England)

"Putting into place a bureaucratic and costly system that would encourage one public service to claim back money from a partner public service is a recipe for blame and recrimination, not cooperation, and could set back much of the excellent work that is being done across the country to provide joined-up services for older people,"-Alison King, Social Services Chair, Local Government Association

On the Health and Social Care Bill

"Stakeholder councils are a positive development that could lead to greater accountability and transparency of management as well as greater local autonomy for nurses and patients. This could also lead to better evaluation of healthcare outcomes by trusts with positive benefits for patients."-Royal College of Nursing

"The BDA welcomes news that for the first time, an NHS body will be obliged to provide dental services, thus bringing dentistry into line with medical services in both primary and secondary care. The BDA is particularly interested to see how the proposals impact on the fundamental problems facing NHS dental services such as the way dentists are paid, the introduction of a more preventive approach to patient care and the amount of funding allocated to NHS dental services."-British Dental Association

"If we have hospitals acting outside of the NHS it sets up this two-tier system and will have a negative effect on recruitment and retention of staff from hospitals that don't have this kind of status,"-Dave Prentis, General Secretary, Unison

"We believe that foundations could be one way of releasing hospitals from Whitehall control, and a first step towards a more decentralised NHS. But they must not distract from the more far-reaching government commitment to a wide ranging programme of deregulation for all hospitals, not just the top 10,"-Gill Morgan, Chief Executive, NHS Confederation

On the omission of the Draft Mental Health Bill

"We hope that the failure to mention the mental health bill does not mean that our 16 years of campaigning will be allowed to run into the sand. If we do not introduce mental health reform soon, to reflect the fact that the majority of mentally ill people live in the community, thousands will continue to be turned away when they seek help and the needs and views of families neglected."-Marjorie Wallace, Chief executive of SANE

"The college fully supports legislative reform and is keen to continue talking with government in order to ensure that this country has a Mental Health Act which benefits everyone, whether currently a patient with a mental health disorder or not."-The Royal College of Psychiatrists