Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.-(1) This Order may be cited as the Forth Valley Acute Hospitals National Health Service Trust (Establishment) Order 1998 and shall come into force on 2nd November 1998.

(2) In this Order, unless the context otherwise requires-�

"the Act" means the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978;

"establishment date" means 2nd November 1998;

"operational date" has the meaning assigned to it in paragraph 3(1)(e) of Schedule 7A to the Act;

"the trust" means Forth Valley Acute Hospitals National Health Service Trust established by article 2 of this Order.

Establishment of the trust

2. There is hereby established an NHS trust which shall be called Forth Valley Acute Hospitals National Health Service Trust.

Nature and functions of the trust

3.-(1) The trust is established for the purpose specified in section 12A(1)(b) of the Act.

(2) The trust's functions (which include functions which the Secretary of State considers appropriate in relation to the provision of services by the trust for one or more Health Boards) shall be to provide and manage hospital accommodation and facilities at Falkirk and District Royal Infirmary, Falkirk and Stirling Royal Infirmary, Stirling, and at establishments associated with those hospitals, and also including the management of any teaching and research facilities associated with those establishments and the support services related thereto.

Directors of the trust

4. The trust shall have, in addition to the chairman, 5 non-executive directors and 5 executive directors.

Operational date and accounting date of the trust

5.-(1) The operational date of the trust shall be 1st April 1999.

(2) The accounting date of the trust shall be 31st March.

Limited functions before operational date

6. Between its establishment date and its operational date in order to enable it to begin to operate satisfactorily from the operational date the trust shall have the limited functions-�

(a)of entering into NHS contracts;

(b)of entering into other contracts including contracts of employment;

(c)of doing such other things as are reasonably necessary for the said purposes.

Assistance by Health Board before operational date

7.-(1) The Forth Valley Health Board shall discharge the liabilities of the trust, incurred between the establishment date and the operational date, that are of a description specified in paragraph (2) of this article, and provided that the liabilities have been incurred with the prior consent of the said Board.

(2) The liabilities referred to in the preceding paragraph are-�

(a)liability for the remuneration and travelling or other allowances of the chairman and non-executive directors of the trust;

(b)liability for the travelling or other allowances of the members of committees and sub-committees of the trust who are not also directors of the trust;

(c)liability for the remuneration of persons employed by the trust; and

(d)any other liability which may reasonably be incurred by the trust for the purpose of enabling it to begin to operate satisfactorily with effect from the operational date.

(3) The Health Board specified for the purposes of paragraph 3(1)(f) of Schedule 7A to the Act (body which is to make the scheme under section 12B of the Act for the transfer of staff) in relation to the trust shall be the Forth Valley Health Board.

Restriction on disposal of assets

8. The sum specified for the purposes of paragraph 6(2)(d) of Schedule 7A to the Act (maximum value of freely disposable assets) in relation to the trust shall be £500,000.

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order establishes the Forth Valley Acute Hospitals National Health Service Trust, an NHS trust provided for in section 12A of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978. It also provides for the functions of the trust both before (article 6) and after (article 3) its operational date (the date on which it assumes all its functions). It specifies the operational date and the accounting date of the trust (article 5) and makes provision for assistance to the trust by the appropriate Health Board before its operational date (article 7).