Gifts and Hospitality Policy 2020–2022

1.1 This policy describes the arrangements that NHS Portsmouth Clinical Commissioning Group (the CCG) has in place for the management of gifts and hospitality. This policy has been developed in line with the Revised Statutory Guidance on Managing Conflicts of Interest for CCG’s which was issued by NHS England in June 2017.

1.2 The aim of this policy is to protect both the CCG as a corporate entity and those individuals who work for, with or on behalf of the organisation, from any appearance of impropriety and/or inducement in the conduct of CCG business.

1.3 This policy should be read in conjunction with the CCG’s Conflicts of Interest Policy – which reflects the legal requirements and statutory guidance issued by NHS England under sections 14O and 14Z8 of the Health and Social Care Act 2012.

1.4 This policy applies to:

• All CCG employees (including temporary staff, students, apprentices, trainees, agency staff, seconded staff, self-employed consultants, sessional staff or those on short term contracts, self-employed consultants and individuals working for the CCG under a contract for services) Any work experience staff or volunteers.
• Members of the Governing Body, all members of the CCG’s committees, sub-committees or sub groups including co-opted members, appointed deputies and any member of committees/groups from other organisations.
• All GP Partners / individuals directly involved with the business or decision-making of the CCG. These are collectively referred to as ‘individuals’ hereafter.

1.5 This policy has been developed in conjunction with the Conflict of Interest Guardian and Counter Fraud Service.

2.1 Chief Clinical Officer
The CCG’s Chief Clinical Officer has overall accountability for the CCG’s management of gifts and hospitality.

2.2 Conflicts of Interest Guardian
This role is held by the CCG Audit Chair who:

• Acts as a conduit for CCG staff, members of the public and healthcare professionals who have any concerns with regards to the acceptance of gifts and hospitality or conflicts of interest.
• Support the application of policies pertaining to conflicts of interest and gifts and hospitality.
• Provide independent advice and judgement including minimising risks associated with the management of conflicts of interest and gifts and hospitality.

2.3 Line Managers

• Provide basic advice to their teams on how gifts and hospitality should be managed
• Ensure team members do not accept gifts and hospitality that would breach the terms of this policy
• Ensure their teams participate and undertake any required training in respect of conflicts of interest or gifts and hospitality.

2.4 Head of Governance

• Provide advice, support and guidance on the management of gifts and hospitality
• Maintain the CCG registers of interests, procurement decisions and gifts and hospitality
• Support the Conflicts of Interest Guardian
• Act in the role determined within the gifts and hospitality requirements as stated in the NHSE statutory guidance

2.5 Individuals

• All individuals must consider the risks associated with accepting offers of gifts, hospitality and entertainment when undertaking activities for, or on behalf of the CCG and should not accept gifts that may affect, or be seen to affect their professional judgement. This overarching principle should apply in all circumstances and is especially important during procurement processes as the acceptance of gifts could give rise to real, potential or perceived conflicts of interests, or accusations of unfair influence, collusion or canvassing.
• No individual, under any circumstances, should ask for gifts.

3.1 A ‘gift’ is defined as any item of cash or goods, or any service, which is provided for personal; benefit, free of charge or at less than its commercial value.

3.2 Any personal gift of cash or cash equivalents (e.g. vouchers, tokens, offers of remuneration to attend meetings which in a capacity working for or representing the CCG) must always be declined, whatever their value and whatever their source, and the offer which has been declined must be declared to the Head of Governance for inclusion on the CCG register.

3.3 Gifts from suppliers or contractors either currently doing business, or likely to do business with the CCG should be declined, whatever their value (subject to this, low cost branded promotional aids may be accepted and not declared where they are under the value of a common industry standard of £6). The person to whom the gifts were offered must inform the Head of Governance for inclusion on the CCG register.

3.4 Whilst national guidance states ‘Modest gifts under a value of £50 may be accepted and do not need to be declared’, the CCG’s Executive Team have decided to apply a zero tolerance approach to all gifts (with the exception of those under £6 as stated in section 3.3)

3.5 Individuals should discuss any issues relating to gifts with the Head of Governance.

4.1 Hospitality means offers of meals, refreshments, travel, accommodation and other expenses in relation to attendance at meetings, conferences, education and training event etc.

4.2 Delivery of services across the NHS relies on working with a wide range of partners in different places and sometimes outside of ‘traditional’ working hours. As a result, CCG staff will sometimes appropriately receive hospitality. In doing so, staff should always be prepared to justify why it has been accepted and be mindful that even hospitality of a small value may give rise to perceptions of impropriety and might influence behaviour.

4.3 Hospitality must only be accepted when there is a legitimate business reason and it is proportionate to the nature and purpose of the event.

4.4 Particular caution should be exercised when hospitality is offered by actual or potential suppliers or contractors, these can be accepted if modest and reasonable but individuals should always obtain senior approval and declare these to the Head of Governance.

Meals and Refreshments

4.5 Under a value of £25 may be accepted and need not be declared

4.6 Of a value between £25 and £75 may be accepted and must be declared

4.7 Over a value of £75 should be refused unless (in exceptional circumstances) senior approval is given. A clear reason should be recorded on the CCG’s Gifts and Hospitality register as to why it was permissible to accept.

Travel and Accommodation

4.8 Modest offers to pay some or all of the travel and accommodation costs related to attendance at events may be accepted and must be declared.(e.g. standard public transport rates in the UK).

4.9 Offers which exceed modest, or are of a type that the CCG itself might not offer, need approval by senior staff and should only be accepted in exceptional circumstances and must be declared to the Head of Governance. A clear reason should be recorded on the CCG’s Gifts and Hospitality register as to why it was permissible to accept. This might include:

• Offers of business class or first class travel and accommodation (including domestic travel) and
• Offers of foreign travel and accommodation.

5.1 Sponsorship of NHS events by external parties is valued. Offers to meet some or part of the costs of running an event secures their ability to take place. Without this funding there may be fewer opportunities for learning, development and partnership working. There is a potential for conflicts to arise between the organiser and the sponsor, particularly regarding the ability to market commercial products or services.

5.2 When sponsorships are offered the following should be adhered to:

•  Sponsorship of CCG events by appropriate external bodies should only be approved if a reasonable person would conclude that the event will result in clear benefit for the CCG and NHS
• During dealing with sponsors there must be no breach of patient or individual confidentiality or data protection rules and legislation
• No information should be supplied to the sponsor from which they could gain a commercial advantage and information which is not in the public domain should not normally be supplied.
• At the CCG’s discretion, sponsors or their representatives may attend or take part on the event but they should not have a dominant influence over the content or the main purpose of the event.
• The involvement of a sponsor in an event should always be clearly identified in the interest of transparency
• The organiser needs to make it clear that sponsorship does not equate to endorsement of a company or its products and this should be made visibly clear on any promotional or other materials relating to the event.
• All CCG staff must declare their involvement with arranging sponsored events to the Head of Governance for inclusion on the register of interests.

5.3 Organisations external to the CCG or NHS may also sponsor posts or research. There is a potential for conflicts of interest to occur, particularly when research funding by external bodies does, or could lead to a real or perceived commercial advantage, or if sponsored posts cause a conflict of interest between the aims of the sponsor and the aims of the CCG, particularly in relation to procurement and competition. In order to maintain transparency and ensure such conflicts, real or perceived, are managed, individuals should discuss these post prior to appointment with the CCG Conflicts of Interest Guardian and Head of Governance.

6.1 All offers of gifts and hospitality should be made to the Head of Governance for recording on the CCG register(s).

6.2 All registers are published on the CCG website following regular review by the Audit Committee.

6.3 In exceptional circumstances where the disclosure of information could give rise to a real risk of harm or is prohibited by law, an individual’s name and/or other information may be redacted from the publicly available registers. Where an individual believes that substantial damage or distress may be caused to him/herself or somebody else by the publication of information about them, they are entitled to request that the information is not published. Such requests must be made in writing to the CCG’s Conflicts of Interest Guardian. Where a decision is made not to publish information, the Head of Governance will retain a confidential un-redacted version. Should the request be refused, the individual will have the right to appeal using the CCG’s Grievance Bullying and Harassment Policy. During this time a redacted version of the register(s) will be published.

7.1 All registers pertaining to Conflicts of Interest including compliance with mandatory training, is overseen by the Audit Committee.

7.2 Each year the CCG is required to undertake an audit of gifts and hospitality management as part of the wider conflicts of interest audit. The outcome of such audits will be reflected in the Annual Governance Statement that forms part of the Annual Report and Accounts.

7.3 Staff identified against the NHS England criteria, are required to undertake Conflicts of Interest training which includes gifts and hospitality. The training modules are available for all individuals to complete and this is actively encouraged.

8.1 Raising Concerns and Breaches

8.1.1 Effective management of conflicts of interest requires a culture where individuals feel supported and confident in declaring relevant information, including the reporting of any real or suspected breaches of the rules.

8.1.2 It is the duty of every individual (detailed in section 1.4) to speak up about, and report genuine concerns in relation to the administration of conflicts of interest, including gifts and hospitality management.

8.1.2 Individuals should report any such concerns to the Head of Governance, Conflicts of Interest Guardian, or individuals listed in section 7 of the CCG’s ‘Whistleblowing – Freedom to Speak up’ Policy available on the CCG intranet.

8.1.3 All breaches will be anonymised and published on the CCG website.

8.1.4 Failure to comply with this policy can have serious implications for the CCG and individuals concerned:

• Civil implications: The CCG could face civil challenges to decisions it makes. For instance if breaches occur during a service re-design or procurement exercise, the CCG risks a legal challenge from providers that could overturn the award of the contract, lead to a damages claim against the CCG and necessitate a repeat of the procurement process – thereby delaying services changes which have a direct impact on patients, waste public money and damage the CCG reputation.
• Criminal Implications: Failure to manage the acceptance of gifts and hospitality could lead to criminal proceedings for offences such as fraud, bribery and corruption.
• Disciplinary Implications: individuals who fail to disclose any gift or hospitality offered to them in line with this policy will be subject to investigation and, where appropriate, disciplinary action. Individuals should be aware that outcomes of such action may result in the termination of their employment or position with the CCG.

8.2 Managing Breaches

8.2.1 All breaches of the CCG’s Gifts and Hospitality Policy will be subject to internal investigation in the first instance. These will be completed in line with the CCG’s Whistleblowing – Freedom to Speak Up Policy and subsequent actions will be taken in line with the relevant CCG Human Resources policies.

8.2.2 All investigations (internal and external) will be shared with the Audit Committee to review any lessons learnt and recommendations for actions.

8.2.3 Where a breach is confirmed, the Head of Governance will notify NHS England, including information about the nature of the breach and actions taken as a result. This information will also be anonymised and published on the CCG’s website.

8.2.4 Where necessary, a communications plan will be developed in order to manage any media interest. This will be determined on a case-by-case basis.

9.1 Bribery

9.1.1 The CCG operates a zero tolerance towards bribery, fraud and corruption and has
put in place a separate Anti-Fraud, Bribery and Corruption Policy which can be found
on the CCG intranet.

9.1.2 The Bribery Act 2010 defines bribery as the giving or taking of a reward in return for acting dishonestly and/or in breach of the law. There are four classifications of bribery:

• Bribing another person
• Being bribed
• Bribing a foreign public official and
• Failure to prevent bribery.

9.1.3 Any offering, promising, giving, requesting, agreeing to, receiving or accepting of any bribe is strictly forbidden by any employee when conducting business on behalf of the CCG or when representing the CCG in any capacity and is contrary to the Bribery Act 2010. Furthermore the CCG requires all individual to report any offering, promising, giving, requesting, agreeing to, receiving or accepting of any bribe, whether real, suspected or otherwise. Individuals who fail to adhere to this policy will be dealt with by means of a criminal sanction, civil recovery and/or via the CCG’s disciplinary processes.

9.2 Fraud

9.2.1 The Fraud Act 2006 created a criminal offence of fraud and defines three ways of committing it:

• Fraud by false representation
• Fraud by failing to disclose information and
• Fraud by abuse of position

9.2.2 In these cases and offender’s conduct must be dishonest and their intention must be to make a gain or cause a loss (or the risk of a loss) to another.

9.2.3 Suspicion or concerns regarding fraud will be managed through the separate Anti-Fraud, Bribery and Corruption Policy which can be found on the CCG intranet.

3. Does, or could the policy have a negative impact on members of the equality groups listed below?

4. Does, or could the policy help to promote equality for members of the equality groups listed below?