# The General Pharmaceutical Council (Amendment of Miscellaneous Provisions) Rules Order of Council 2016, Note: Explanatory note


(This note is not part of the Order)
This Order approves the General Pharmaceutical Council (Amendment of Miscellaneous Provisions) Rules 2016 (“the Rules”). The Rules were made by the General Pharmaceutical Council (“the Council”) under the Pharmacy Order 2010 (S.I. 2010/231) (“the Pharmacy Order”).
Part 2 of the Rules contains an amendment to the General Pharmaceutical Council (Statutory Committees and their Advisers) Rules 2010 (S.I. 2010/1616). The amendment in rule 2 prevents any person who has sat as a member of the Council’s Fitness to Practise Committee when considering any matter from also acting as a member of the Appeals Committee in proceedings connected with the same matter.
Part 3 of the Rules amends provisions of the General Pharmaceutical Council (Registration) Rules 2010 (S.I. 2010/1617) (“the Registration Rules”). Rule 3 sets out circumstances in which persons who are entered in Part 1 or Part 2 of the Register that is established and maintained under article 19 of the Pharmacy Order are required to provide to the Registrar information about any indemnity arrangement which relates to the person’s practice as a registered pharmacist or a registered pharmacy technician. In rule 4, paragraphs (2) and (5) impose requirements relating to the indemnity cover which an applicant for entry in Part 1 or 2 of the Register must have in place in order to practise as a pharmacist or pharmacy technician. Paragraphs (3)(b) and (c) of that rule require such applicants to demonstrate that they have the knowledge of English necessary to practise as a pharmacist or pharmacy technician. The remaining provisions of rule 4 provide that a copy of a UK passport, which is required when making an application for registration, does not need to include the front cover. Rule 5 requires registrants who are making an application to renew their registration to meet specified requirements relating to indemnity cover and knowledge of English. Rule 6 imposes requirements about indemnity cover in relation to registrants applying to have an annotation in respect of a specialisation made to their entry in Part 1 or 2 of the Register and rule 7 imposes requirements about indemnity cover in relation to registrants making an application to renew any such annotation. Rule 8 imposes requirements about indemnity cover and knowledge of English in relation to applicants for the restoration of an entry in Part 1 or 2 of the Register. Rule 9 imposes requirements about indemnity cover in relation to applicants for the restoration of an annotation to such an entry.
Part 4 of the Rules makes a number of amendments to the General Pharmaceutical Council (Fitness to Practise and Disqualification etc.) Rules 2010 (S.I. 2010/1615). Rule 10 defines what is meant by “a knowledge of English allegation”. Rule 11 enables the Registrar to give a direction requiring a person subject to such an allegation to undertake an examination or other assessment as to their knowledge of English and to provide the Registrar with the results obtained. Rule 11 also enables any failure to comply with such a direction to be referred directly to the Council’s Fitness to Practise Committee instead of to its Investigating Committee. Rule 12 makes provision as to information that must be provided to any person who is subject to a knowledge of English allegation which has been referred to the Investigating Committee. In the case of a person applying for restoration of an entry which was removed from the Register by a direction given by the Fitness to Practise Committee, rule 13 provides that the evidence which the person must provide to demonstrate that they are fit to return to practice may include evidence that the person has the knowledge of English necessary to practise as a pharmacist or pharmacy technician. It also enables the Registrar to require any such applicant to undertake an examination or other assessment as to their knowledge of English and to provide the Registrar with the results obtained. Rule 14 enables the Investigating Committee to require a person subject to a knowledge of English allegation to undertake an examination or other assessment as to their knowledge of English and to provide the Registrar with the results obtained and rule 15 confers equivalent powers on the Fitness to Practise Committee. Rule 16 enables the Fitness to Practise Committee to take account of a person’s failure to comply with a direction requiring the person to undertake a knowledge of English assessment when that Committee is determining whether a person’s fitness to practise is impaired.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2016/1008/note (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/general-pharmaceutical-council-amendment-of-miscellaneous-provisions-rules-order-of-council-2016/note
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.