Health and Personal Social Services (Disciplinary Procedures) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996

Procedure on Appeal

10.—(1) Subject to paragraph (5), if the Department, after considering a notice of appeal and any further particulars furnished by the practitioner, is of the opinion that the notice and particulars disclose no reasonable grounds of appeal or that the appeal is otherwise vexatious or frivolous, it may determine the appeal by dismissing it forthwith.

(2) The Department shall, unless it dismisses the appeal under paragraph (1), send a copy of the notice of appeal and of any further particulars furnished by the practitioner to the appropriate Board, and shall invite that Board to submit its observations on the appeal within 28 days of being sent the copy of the notice of appeal.

(3) Where observations are made under paragraph (2), the Department shall send a copy of those observations to the practitioner and shall invite him to submit his comments on the observations within 21 days of his being sent that copy.

(4) The Department shall hold an oral hearing to determine the appeal except in the circumstances described in paragraph (5).

(5) Where a practitioner who is not appealing under regulation 9(1)(a), appeals under regulation 9(1)(b) against a decision in which the appropriate Board has determined to take action under paragraphs (3) or (5)(a), (b) or (c) of regulation 8, his appeal may be dismissed without an oral hearing if the practitioner has stated in writing that he does not want such a hearing.

(6) Where there is to be an oral hearing the Department shall appoint three persons to hear the appeal, of whom—

(a) one shall be a barrister or solicitor, and shall act as chairman; and

(b) two shall be selected in accordance with paragraphs (7) and (8).

(7) The persons appointed under paragraph (6)(b) shall be—

(a) where the practitioner is a doctor, two doctors;

(b) where the practitioner is a dentist, two dentists;

(c) where the practitioner is an ophthalmic medical practitioner, two ophthalmic medical practitioners;

(d) where the practitioner is an optician, two opticians;

(e) where the practitioner is a chemist, two registered pharmacists.

(8) In a case to which—

(a) paragraph 7(a) applies, one of the doctors shall be selected after consultation with such organisations as may be recognised by the Department as representative of the medical profession;

(b) paragraph 7(b) applies, one of the dentists shall be selected after consultation with such organisations as may be recognised by the Department as representative of the dental profession.

(9) The Department shall appoint a day for the hearing and shall give the practitioner and the appropriate Board not less than 21 days notice in writing of the day, time and place of the hearing.

(10) No person shall, without the consent of the practitioner and the persons appointed under paragraph (6), be admitted to a hearing before those persons unless he is—

(a) the practitioner;

(b) a representative of the appropriate Board who is an officer or a member of that Board;

(c) a person (who may be a barrister, a solicitor or any other person) engaged by a person or body mentioned in sub-paragraph (a) or (b) of this paragraph to represent them before the persons appointed under paragraph (6); or

(d) a person whose attendance is required for the purpose of giving evidence to the persons so appointed.

(11) The practitioner and the appropriate Board shall not rely on any facts or contentions which do not appear to the Department or the persons hearing the appeal to have been raised in the course of the proceedings before the discipline committee unless—

(a) not less than seven days before the hearing, notice in writing was given to the Department of such facts or contentions; or

(b) the Department or the persons hearing the appeal give their consent.

(12) The persons hearing the appeal shall draw up a report and present it to the Department who shall take it into consideration and determine the appeal.

(13) Where a Board has made recommendations to the Tribunal following its consideration of a report of a discipline committee, the Department may, for the purpose of any appeal under regulation 9(1)(a), treat as conclusive any relevant findings of fact of the Tribunal.

(14) The Department shall give notice in writing to the practitioner and the appropriate Board of its determination under paragraph (1) or (12) of the matters mentioned in paragraphs (3)(c), (3)(d) or 4(b) of regulation 9 and shall include with the notice a statement of its reasons for the determination.

(15) The provisions as to enquiries contained in Schedule 8 to the Order shall apply to an appeal held under this regulation as if in paragraph 3 of that Schedule for the words “person appointed to hold the inquiry” there were substituted the words “persons hearing the appeal”.