The House considered whether the Secretary of State for Health acted lawfully in issuing guidance as to the employment of foreign doctors to employing bodies within the National Health Service in April 2006.
Held: The secretary of state’s appeal failed. The fact that the guidance differentiated between NHS service and private medical care indicated that this was a matter of policy, not of employment law. As such, the guidance could only have been introduced under the 1971 Act. The guidance was unlawful. (Lord Scott dissenting)
Lord Bingham of Cornhill, Lord Scott of Foscote, Lord Rodger of Earlsferry, Lord Carswell, Lord Mance
[2008] UKHL 27, Times 01-May-2008, [2008] 2 WLR 1073, [2008] LS Law Medical 265, [2008] 1 AC 1003, [2009] 1 All ER 93, [2008] ICR 659
Bailii, HL
Immigration Act 1971
England and Wales
Citing:
At First Instance – BAPIO Action Ltd and Another, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department and Another QBD 9-Feb-2007
The claimants said that changes to the Highy Skilled Migrant Programme were unfairly introduced, that they had effectively barred non-EU doctors from applying for first tier doctor appointments, and that the guidance could properly be derived only . .
Appeal from – BAPIO Action Ltd and Another, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department and Another CA 9-Nov-2007
The action group appealed against refusal of a judicial review of guidelines as to the employment of non-EU doctors, saying that they were in effect immigration rules and issuable only under the 1971 Act. The court had said that since the guidance . .
Cited – Town Investments Ltd v Department of the Environment HL 2-Mar-1977
The House considered the application of Orders made under the Counter-Inflation Acts 1972 and 1973 to premises let initially to the Minister of Works and then to the Secretary of State for the Environment for occupation by civil servants. Each of . .
Approved – Mapere, Regina (on the Application of) v Secretary of State for the Home Department Admn 3-Jul-2000
To establish a legitimate expectation, the assurances relied on should be assurances that have been given by the decision-maker: ‘it would be wrong in principle for courts to rule that a decision-maker’s discretion should be limited by an assurance . .
Cited – Regina v Secretary of State for the Home Department ex parte Fire Brigades Union HL 5-Apr-1995
Parliament had passed the 1988 Act which provided for a new Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme. Instead of implementing the Act, the Home Secretary drew up a non-statutory scheme for a tarriff based system by using prerogative powers. The . .
Cited – Council of Civil Service Unions v Minister for the Civil Service HL 22-Nov-1984
Exercise of Prerogative Power is Reviewable
The House considered an executive decision made pursuant to powers conferred by a prerogative order. The Minister had ordered employees at GCHQ not to be members of trades unions.
Held: The exercise of a prerogative power of a public nature . .
Cited – S and others v Secretary of State for the Home Department CA 4-Aug-2006
The asylum applicants had complained that the appellant’s discretionary leave policy for the grant of temporary admissions was unlawful. As failed asylum seekers, they had been held on temporary admission rather than being granted discretionary . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Health Professions, Immigration
Updated: 01 November 2021; Ref: scu.267372