The Health and Personal Social Services Act (Northern Ireland) 2001 (Fund-holding Practices) (Transfer of Assets, Rights and Liabilities and Transitional Provisions) Order (Northern Ireland) 2002

Part VISaving Provisions

Investigation of complaints by the Commissioner for Complaints

11.  A complaint made to the Commissioner for Complaints under the Commissioner for Complaints (Northern Ireland) Order 1996(1) in relation to the former members of a fund-holding practice whether made before or after the repeal of the fund-holding provisions may be investigated, or if not disposed of, shall continue to be investigated by the Commissioner in accordance with that Order as though Article 8(4) of that Order had not been repealed.

Investigation of other complaints

12.  The procedure to investigate complaints established and operated under paragraph 52 of Schedule 2 to the General Medical Services Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997(2) shall apply in relation to any complaint about the use of the allotted sum by the former members of a fund-holding practice, whether a complaint was made before, on or after the date this Order comes into operation, and notwithstanding the repeal of the fund-holding provisions the former members of the fund-holding practice shall co-operate with the investigation of the complaint by the Health and Social Services Board as required by paragraph 53 of Schedule 2 to those Regulations.

Outstanding applications relating to savings

13.—(1) Any application made before 1st April 2002 to the Health and Social Services Board to apply the allotted sum for a purpose specified in regulation 21(2) or (3) of the 1993 Regulations shall notwithstanding the repeal of the fund-holding provisions be determined by the Health and Social Services Board in accordance with regulation 21(3).

(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1), paragraphs (5) to (7) of regulation 21 of the 1993 Regulations shall continue to apply as though the fund-holding provisions had not been repealed.

Recovery of misapplied sums

14.—(1) Notwithstanding the repeal of the fund-holding provisions, the Department may on or after 1st April 2002 apply the procedure in regulation 22 of the 1993 Regulations(4) to determine whether any part of the allotted sum has been misapplied by the former members of a fund-holding practice and the Department may recover in accordance with that regulation any sum found to have been misapplied and regulation 22 of the 1993 Regulations shall apply to such determinations and recoveries as though the fund-holding provisions had not been repealed.

(2) Paragraph (1) shall apply whether or not the procedures to determine whether a sum had been misapplied or to recover such a sum had been begun before 1st April 2002.

(3)

Regulation 21 was substituted by regulation 14 of S.R. 1998 No. 323

(4)

Regulation 22 was amended by S.R. 1996 No. 131 and S.R. 1997 No. 184