The National Health Service (Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 2005

Premises approval – transitional provisions

67.—(1) This regulation applies to a doctor who has been finally granted outline consent under the 1992 Regulations, or for whom arrangements or requirements were in effect under the 1992 Regulations, to provide drugs or appliances to patients and that consent is, or those arrangements or requirements are, in effect on the date these regulations come into force.

(2) For the purposes of this regulation, “relevant premises” means—

(a) premises from which, at the date of notification under paragraph (5), the doctor is providing primary medical services; or

(b) premises in addition to or in place of the premises specified in paragraph (a) where, immediately before the date these Regulations came into force, the doctor intended to dispense.

(3) The Primary Care Trust shall determine whether or not to grant premises approval to relevant premises in accordance with paragraphs (4) to (6).

(4) Before the end of the period of 30 days beginning with the date that these Regulations come into force, the Primary Care Trust shall notify each doctor who is on its dispensing doctors list that—

(a) the Primary Care Trust is required to make a determination under paragraph (3) as to whether or not to grant premises approval in respect of the relevant premises; and

(b) he may make written representations to the Primary Care Trust in relation to such a determination within the period of 30 days beginning with the date of the Primary Care Trust’s notification or such longer period as the Primary Care Trust may for good cause allow.

(5) The Primary Care Trust shall—

(a) also notify the Local Medical Committee and the Local Pharmaceutical Committee which were required to be sent a copy of the application under regulations 33(2) and (3) and inform them that they may make written representations within the period of 30 days beginning with the date of the Primary Care Trust’s notification;

(b) consider any representations received from the Committees mentioned in sub-paragraph (a) and the doctor;

(c) determine that the doctor has premises approval for premises which are, or are part of, relevant premises; and

(d) notify its decision to the doctor, the Committees mentioned in sub-paragraph (a), any person providing pharmaceutical services or dispensing services in the Primary Care Trust’s area whose interests might, in the opinion of the Primary Care Trust, be affected and all Patients' Forums in that area.

(6) The Primary Care Trust shall grant premises approval under paragraph (3) where—

(a) it is satisfied that the relevant premises were, prior to the coming into force of these Regulations, being routinely used to provide dispensing services; or

(b) outline consent had been granted under the 1992 Regulations after 31st March 2004 in respect of the relevant premises.

(7) The Primary Care Trust shall not refuse to grant premises approval under paragraph (3) by reason of the relevant premises being within 1.6 kilometres of any pharmacy.

(8) The Primary Care Trust’s determination under paragraph (5)(c) may be appealed to the Secretary of State by a person notified of the determination under paragraph (5)(d) except the Committees mentioned in paragraph (5)(a), and regulations 38(5) to (15) shall apply to such appeals except that, for this purpose, regulation 38 shall be read as if—

(a) in paragraph (7) the reference to “those persons mentioned in paragraph (3)(a)” were a reference to those persons notified under paragraph (5)(d);

(b) in paragraph (12) the list of persons to whom notice of the hearing should be sent were a reference to the persons notified under paragraph (5)(d); and

(c) in paragraph (14) sub-paragraphs (b), (c) and (d) were omitted.

(9) Until—

(a) the date of the determination of the Primary Care Trust under paragraph (3); or

(b) the date that any appeal under paragraph (7) is decided,

whichever is the later, a doctor shall be deemed to have been granted premises approval for the relevant premises, but he may not make any application under regulation 64 or 65 by virtue of this paragraph.