Citation and commencement

1. This Order may be cited as the General Medical Council (Constitution of Fitness to Practise Committees) (Transitional Arrangements) Rules Order of Council 2003, and shall come into force on 1st July 2003.

Revocations

2. The following Orders are hereby revoked—

(a) the General Medical Council (Constitution of Fitness to Practise Committees) Rules Order of Council 1996( 3 ); and

(b) the General Medical Council (Constitution of Interim Orders Committee) Rules Order of Council 2000( 4 ).

SCHEDULE THE GENERAL MEDICAL COUNCIL (CONSTITUTION OF FITNESS TO PRACTISE COMMITTEES) (TRANSITIONAL ARRANGEMENTS) RULES 2003

The General Medical Council in exercise of their powers under paragraphs 19A, 20, 21, 21A, 21B and 22 of Schedule 1 to the Medical Act 1983 and of all other powers enabling them in that behalf, hereby make the following Rules:—

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1. —(1) These Rules may be cited as the General Medical Council (Constitution of Fitness to Practise Committees) (Transitional Arrangements) Rules 2003 and shall come into force on 1st July 2003.

(2) In these Rules—

“the Council” means the General Medical Council;

“fitness to practise committees” means the Preliminary Proceedings Committee, the Professional Conduct Committee, the Health Committee, the Assessment Referral Committee, the Committee on Professional Performance and the Interim Orders Committee;

“lay person” means a person who is neither a doctor nor a holder of any qualification registrable under the Medical Act 1983;

“doctor” means a registered medical practitioner;

“the President” means the President of the Council.

Chairmen and members

2. —(1) Subject to rules 3, 4 and 6, the membership of each of the fitness to practise committees shall comprise of doctors and lay persons appointed to each of those committees by the Council and included on lists of persons for each of those committees maintained by the Council.

(2) The fitness to practise committees may include members of the Council.

(3) In respect of each fitness to practise committee the Council shall appoint a Chairman and one or more Deputy Chairmen from the members of the committee.

(4) If, for the hearing of a case by a fitness to practise committee other than the Preliminary Proceedings Committee, neither the Chairman nor any of the Deputy Chairmen of that Committee is, or will be able to take the chair, the Chairman or a Deputy Chairman or the President may appoint another member of the Committee, who is, will be or was present at the commencement of the hearing, to chair the whole or (as the case may be) the remaining part of it.

Restrictions on membership of the Preliminary Proceedings Committee

3. A person may not be a member of the Preliminary Proceedings Committee if—

(a) he is a medical screener appointed under rule 4(2) of the General Medical Council Preliminary Proceedings Committee and Professional Conduct Committee (Procedure) Rules 1988( 5 ) or a lay person appointed under paragraph (5) of that rule; or

(b) he is appointed under rule 5(2) or (3) of the General Medical Council Health Committee (Procedure) Rules 1987( 6 ) to undertake or assist in the initial consideration of cases under Part II of those Rules.

Restrictions on membership of the Assessment Referral Committee

4. A person may not be a member of the Assessment Referral Committee if he is a medical screener appointed under rule 3(1) of the General Medical Council (Professional Performance) Rules 1997( 7 ) or if he is a lay screener appointed for the purposes of rule 5(6), (7) and (8) and rule 6(8) of those Rules.

Quorum

5. The quorum of each fitness to practise committee shall be three, which shall include—

(a) the Chairman, a Deputy Chairman or a person appointed under rule 2(4);

(b) a doctor; and

(c) a lay person.

Disqualification from adjudication

6. No person may sit as a member of a fitness to practise committee for the hearing of any case if he has previously sat as a member of any other fitness to practise committee that has considered that case, or has adjudicated on it elsewhere in any other capacity.

Revocation

7. The rules specified in Schedule 1 are hereby revoked to the extent specified in the third column of that Schedule.

Transitional

8. Where, on the date these Rules come into force, a fitness to practise committee other than the Preliminary Proceedings Committee has begun, but not completed, its hearing of a case, for the remainder of that hearing—

(a) rules 2 to 7 shall not apply to the constitution of the relevant Committee;

(b) the General Medical Council (Constitution of Fitness to Practise Committees) Rules 1996( 8 ) shall continue to apply in the case of a hearing by the Professional Conduct Committee, the Health Committee, the Assessment Referral Committee or the Committee on Professional Performance as if they were still in force; and

(c) the General Medical Council (Constitution of Interim Orders Committee) Rules 2000( 9 ) shall continue to apply in the case of a hearing by the Interim Orders Committee as if they were still in force.

Validity of the Proceedings

9. The validity of any proceedings of any of the fitness to practise committees shall not be affected by any vacancy among the members of the Committees or by any defect in the appointment of a member thereof.

SCHEDULE 1 RULES REVOKED AS FROM 1ST JULY 2003