Identification of GPs
31.—(1) The Board may request the Information Centre to provide a prescribing number in respect of a general medical practitioner(1) whose name is included in a medical performers list.
(2) Where the Board has made a request pursuant to paragraph (1), the Information Centre must carry out checks to verify the identity of the general medical practitioner.
(3) The Information Centre need not comply with a request made pursuant to paragraph (1) if the Board fails to provide information that the Information Centre considers is necessary to enable it to carry out checks to verify the identity of the general medical practitioner.
(4) The checks to verify identity referred to in paragraph (2) may include—
(a)the full name of the general medical practitioner; and
(b)the reference number shown against the name of the general medical practitioner in the General Practitioner Register kept by the General Medical Council.
(5) If, having carried out the checks referred to in paragraph (2), the Information Centre considers it appropriate to do so, the Centre must—
(a)assign a prescribing number to the general medical practitioner; and
(b)issue the prescribing number to the Board.
“General medical practitioners” is defined in section 269(2) of the Act.