The General Medical Council (Constitution) (Amendment) Order 2007

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order amends the General Medical Council (Constitution) Order 2002 (“the 2002 Order”) so as to extend the terms of office of the elected members of the General Medical Council (“GMC”) whose terms of office were due to expire at the end of 30th June 2007. The terms of office of these members will now expire at the end of 31st December 2008.

Consequential changes are made to the limitations on the lengths of the terms of office of all members (including nominated and appointed members, in respect of whom a drafting error in the 2002 Order is corrected). In addition, if an elected member dies, resigns or otherwise ceases to be an elected member, a by-election need only be held if the vacancy is for twelve months or longer and failure to fill it would mean that the number of elected members will no longer exceed the number of nominated and appointed members on the GMC.

The limitation on the period for which a person may serve as President is changed so that only time served after 1st July 2003 is taken into account in the six year aggregate total, and the quorum of the GMC is amended so that if a vacancy on it is not filled and its full membership is consequently reduced, the quorum becomes 70% of the new full membership of the GMC (whole numbers rounded up), subject to a minimum quorum of 10.