Wales now has a specific offence of causing nuisance or disturbance on NHS premises and give the police and authorised NHS officers the power to remove people.
Nuisance and disruptive behaviour includes verbal abuse, physically obstructing corridors, preventing staff from carrying out their duties and creative excessive noise in waiting areas, wards and other areas. The powers do not apply to patients seeking medical advice, treatment or care for themselves. People who cause a nuisance or disturbance; who refuse to leave when asked by staff or police, and are not on the premises to receive medical care themselves, could come under the powers.
It’s part of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008. It also gives police the power to remove a person suspected of committing the offence, using reasonable force if necessary. The authorities point to the latest findings from the All‑Wales NHS Staff Survey that show a drop in staff feeling safe from abuse by patients and the public, falling from 83.6pc to 74.8pc.
Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, Jeremy Miles said: “These powers strengthen protections for our NHS staff and help ensure that our hospitals and healthcare settings remain safe for staff and patients where care can flourish. This is about safety, dignity and supporting the workforce. It does not criminalise people seeking care – it ensures that staff can do their jobs free from fear and people can receive treatment in calm, secure environments.”
Chair of the Anti-Violence Collaborative, a group of the emergency and health services, is Jonathan Webb of NHS Wales’ shared services partnership. He described it as a further milestone in the collaboration between health services and the criminal justice sector in responding to incidents of violent behaviour exhibited by a minority of service users. He said: “It empowers NHS staff to take appropriate action when confronted with unacceptable behaviour and provides an effective resolution to deal with incidents that do occur. We hope that this further reduces the number of incidents of violence and aggression seen in NHS Wales.”
Ambulances
At London Ambulance Service meanwhile, Deputy Director of 999 Operations Laurence Cowderoy has urged callers to behave respectfully to 999 and 111 control room staff; that can face threats or verbal abuse, for example when telling callers that their condition does not need an ambulance response. He said: “We will not tolerate abuse against our staff. The questions we ask and the details we double-check are essential to ensure callers get the right help as quickly as possible. While we know the vast majority of callers are respectful and appreciate the work we do, we urge everyone to think of the impact of their words.
“Every minute our call handlers spend dealing with aggression, racism, or death threats is time taken away from patients with life-threatening problems who urgently need our help.”
The Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) reports that in the year 2024-25, 369 SAS staff were physically assaulted or verbally abused, an increase of 11 per cent compared to 2023-24. SAS Chief Executive Michael Dickson said: “These incidents can have a significant and lasting impact on our people, sometimes even leading them to leave the ambulance service.
“They have the right to carry out their work helping patients and saving lives without fear of assault or abuse and we will continue to work with Police Scotland, like we have done on this occasion, to take action against perpetrators.”
As featured in the June 2025 edition of Professional Security Magazine, Health Secretary Wes Streeting promised ‘zero tolerance for violence and harassment of NHS staff’.
