Health and Social Care Bill given royal assent

The Health and Social Care Bill has become an act after being granted royal assent, meaning healthcare professionals will soon be able to put it into practice.

Its core principles are intended to allow doctors and nurses to tailor care to suit specific patients and cut down on bureaucracy in the NHS, according to the Department of Health.

Andrew Lansley, the health secretary, said the new act is intended to place patients at the centre of any reforms made to the NHS.

"We now have an opportunity to secure clinical leadership to deliver improving quality and outcomes; better results for patients is our objective," he added.

Local government bodies and patients' representatives are set to be handed more of a role in determining the provision of healthcare under the terms of the newly-minted act.

This was the third reading of the bill by the House of Lords, which suggested a number of amendments to the document last week.