Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.-(1) This Order may be cited as the West Hertfordshire Hospitals National Health Service Trust (Establishment) Order 2000 and shall come into force on 23rd March 2000.

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

"the Act" means the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990;

"establishment date" means 23rd March 2000;

"operational date" has the meaning assigned to it in paragraph 3(1)(e) of Schedule 2 to the Act;

"the trust" means the West Hertfordshire Hospitals National Health Service Trust established by article 2 of this Order.

Establishment and name of the trust

2. There is hereby established an NHS trust which shall be called the West Hertfordshire Hospitals National Health Service Trust.

Nature and functions of the trust

3.-(1) The trust is established for the purposes specified in section 5(1) of the Act.

(2) The trust's functions shall be to provide goods, hospital accommodation and services for the purposes of the health service at or from the following hospitals, establishments or facilities-

(a)Watford General Hospital, Vicarage Road, Watford, Hertfordshire, WD1 8HB,

(b)Hemel Hempstead General Hospital, Hillfield Road, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, HP2 4AD.

(c)St. Albans City Hospital, Waverley Road, St. Albans, Hertfordshire, AL3 5TL

and at or from any associated hospitals, establishments and facilities.

Directors of the trust

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

Operational date and accounting date of the trust

5.-(1) The operational date of the trust shall be 1st April 2000.

(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 the trust shall have the 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 to enable it to begin to operate satisfactorily with effect from its operational date.

Assistance by Health Authorities before operational date

7.-(1) West Hertfordshire Health Authority 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.

(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.

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order establishes the West Hertfordshire Hospitals National Health Service Trust, an NHS trust provided for in section 5 of the National Health Service and Community Care Act 1990. It also provides for the functions of the trust (article 3) and the number of executive and non-executive directors (article 4). It specifies the operational date (the date on which the trust assumes all its functions) and the accounting date of the trust (article 5), the trust's limited functions before the operational date (article 6) and the trust's liabilities which will be discharged by the West Hertfordshire Health Authority if incurred between the establishment date and the operational date of the trust (article 7).

This Order should be read in conjunction with the Mount Vernon and Watford Hospitals and the St. Albans and Hemel Hempstead NHS Trusts (Dissolution) Order 2000(3).