The National Health Service (General Dental Services Contracts) (Wales) Regulations 2006

Termination by the Local Health Board: additional provisions specific to contracts with two or more individuals practising in partnership and dental corporations E+W

74.—(1) Where the contractor is a dental corporation, if the Local Health Board becomes aware that the contractor is carrying on any business which the Local Health Board considers to be detrimental to the contractor’s performance of its obligations under the contract—

(a) the Local Health Board will be entitled to give notice to the contractor requiring that it ceases carrying on that business before the end of a period of not less than 28 days beginning on the day on which the notice is given (“the notice period”); and

(b) if the contractor has not satisfied the Local Health Board that it has ceased carrying on that business by the end of the notice period, the Local Health Board may, by a further written notice, terminate the contract forthwith or from such date as may be specified in the notice.

(2) Where the contractor is a dental corporation and on or after the coming into force for all purposes of article 39 of the Dentists Act Order during the existence of the contract—

(a) the majority of the directors of the dental corporation cease to be either dental practitioners or dental care professionals;

(b) the dental corporation has been convicted of an offence under section 43(1) of the Dentists Act(1) (directors of bodies corporate); or

(c) the dental corporation, or a director or former director of that corporation, has had a financial penalty imposed on it or him or her by the General Dental Council pursuant to section 43B (financial penalties in relation to bodies corporate) or 44 (further financial penalties on bodies corporate) of the Dentists Act(2),

the Local Health Board may, by written notice, terminate the contract if it considers that as a consequence the dental corporation is no longer suitable to be a contractor.

(3) Where the contractor is two or more persons practising in partnership, the Local Health Board will be entitled to terminate the contract by notice in writing on such date as may be specified in that notice where one or more partners have left the practice during the existence of the contract if, in its reasonable opinion, the Local Health Board considers that the change in membership of the partnership is likely to have a serious adverse impact on the ability of the contractor or the Local Health Board to perform its obligations under the contract.

(4) A notice given to the contractor pursuant to sub-paragraph (3) will specify—

(a) the date upon which the contract is to be terminated; and

(b) the Local Health Board’s reasons for considering that the change in the membership of the partnership is likely to have a serious adverse impact on the ability of the contractor or the Local Health Board to perform its obligations under the contract.

Commencement Information

I1 Sch. 3 para. 74 in force at 1.3.2006, see reg. 1(1)

(1)

Section 43 of the Dentists Act is substituted by the Dentists Act Order, article 39.

(2)

Section 43B is inserted into, and section 44 is substituted by, the Dentists Act Order, article 39.