The Health Authorities (Membership and Procedure) Regulations 1996

Termination of tenure of office

8.—(1) The chairman or a member of an Authority may resign his office at any time during the period for which he was appointed by giving notice in writing to the Secretary of State.

(2) The date on which a resignation by notice given pursuant to paragraph (1) shall take effect shall be—

(a) where a date is specified in the notice as being that on which the resignation is to take effect, that date; and

(b) in any other case, the date on which the notice is received by the Secretary of State.

(3) Where during his period of membership a member of an Authority is appointed to be the chairman of that Authority, his tenure of office as a member shall terminate when his appointment as chairman takes effect.

(4) If the Secretary of State is of the opinion that—

(a) it is not in the interests of the health service in the area for which an Authority acts; or

(b) it is not conducive to the good management of an Authority,

for a person whom he has appointed as the chairman or a member of that Authority to continue to hold that office, the Secretary of State may forthwith terminate his tenure of office.

(5) If the chairman or a member of an Authority has failed to attend a meeting of that Authority for a period of six months, the Secretary of State shall forthwith terminate the tenure of office of the chairman or that member unless he is satisfied that—

(a) the absence was due to a reasonable cause; and

(b) the chairman or member will be able to attend meetings of that Authority within such period as the Secretary of State considers reasonable.

(6) Where a person has been appointed to be the chairman or a member of an Authority—

(a) if it comes to the notice of the Secretary of State that the person has become disqualified for appointment under regulation 10, the Secretary of State shall forthwith notify him in writing of such disqualification; or

(b) if it comes to the notice of the Secretary of State that at the time of his appointment the person was so disqualified, the Secretary of State shall forthwith declare that he was not duly appointed and so notify him in writing,

and, upon receipt of any such notification, his tenure of office, if any, shall be terminated and he shall cease to act as such chairman or member.

(7) If it appears to the Secretary of State that the chairman or a member of an Authority has failed to comply with regulation 16(1) he may forthwith terminate that person’s tenure of office.

(8) Where a member of an Authority who was appointed by virtue of regulation 2(2) ceases to hold a post in a university with a medical or dental school, the Secretary of State shall forthwith terminate his appointment as a member of the Authority.