Nursing And Midwifery Council v Quinn

An interim conditions of practice order may be extended where the substantive disciplinary hearing is imminent but has not yet concluded. The court should recognise and scrutinise delay, particularly where proceedings have already been prolonged. A further extension may be granted to allow a fixed hearing to proceed, but any further application must be supported by a full and satisfactory explanation for the continuing delay.

The Nursing and Midwifery Council applied to extend an interim conditions of practice order relating to the respondent registrant. The order was due to expire on 17 October 2014, and an extension to 16 February 2015 was sought. The underlying matters arose from an incident in February 2010. The registrant had pleaded guilty before magistrates in November 2010, and subsequent procedural difficulties had delayed the disciplinary proceedings. The substantive hearing had been listed for eleven working days in three tranches between October and December 2014.

1. The application to extend the interim conditions of practice order was granted until 16 February 2015. The substantive hearing was imminent and had been fixed over eleven working days in October, November and December 2014.
2. The court noted the regrettably long history of the matter. The first complained-of incident occurred on 7 February 2010, and the registrant’s guilty plea had been dealt with by magistrates in November 2010. There had also been a stay application and other procedural applications. Some explanation might exist for parts of the delay, but earlier delays may themselves have contributed to the later procedural difficulties.
3. The extension was granted to permit the listed hearing to proceed. The court made clear that, if the extension proved insufficient, any further application would require a full explanation capable of persuading the court that a further extension of the conditions of practice order was justified.