Chiropractors Act 1994

Part IU.K. The General Council

Membership: generalU.K.

[F11A.(1)The General Council shall consist of—

(a)registrant members, that is members who are registered chiropractors; and

(b)lay members, that is members who—

(i)are not and never have been registered chiropractors, and

(ii)do not hold qualifications which would entitle them to apply for registration under this Act.

(2)The members of the General Council shall be appointed by the Privy Council.

(3)The Privy Council shall ensure that, at any time, at least one member of the General Council lives or works wholly or mainly in each of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

F2(4). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Matters for the order of the Privy Council under section 1(4)U.K.

1B.(1)An order under section 1(4) shall include provision with regard to—

(a)the numbers of registrant members and lay members of the General Council;

(b)the terms of office for which members of the General Council are appointed, and the order may provide that these are to be determined by the Privy Council, on appointment;

(c)the grounds on which persons are to be disqualified from appointment as registrant or lay members of the General Council;

(d)the appointment of a chair of the General Council and the chair’s term of office, and the order may provide that the term is to be determined by whoever makes the appointment as chair, on appointment;

(e)deputising arrangements in respect of the chair;

(f)the quorum of the General Council; and

(g)the circumstances in which members cease to hold office or may be removed or suspended from office.

(2)But an order under section 1(4) must not include any provision which would have the effect that a majority of the members of the General Council would be lay members.

(3)An order under section 1(4) may include provision with regard to—

(a)the maximum period for which a member of the General Council may hold office as a member during a specified period;

(b)the maximum period for which a member of the General Council may serve as chair of the General Council during a specified period;

(c)the education and training of members of the General Council, and the order may provide for the General Council to include the requirements with regard to education and training of its members in standing orders, and for those standing orders to provide for—

(i)that education and training to be the responsibility of another body, and

(ii)those requirements to be set and varied by that body from time to time;

(d)the attendance of members of the General Council at meetings of the General Council;

(e)the effect (if any) of any vacancy in the membership of the General Council or any defect in the appointment of a member; and

(f)enabling the Privy Council to appoint as the chair of the General Council, for a specified period, the person who held office as Chairman of the General Council on the day before the first order under section 1(4) comes into force.

(4)An order under section 1(4) may make different provision for different cases or different classes of case and may contain such incidental, consequential, transitional, transitory, saving or supplementary provisions as appear to the Privy Council to be necessary or expedient.

Registration of members’ private interestsU.K.

1C.(1)The General Council must establish and maintain a system for the declaration and registration of private interests of its members.

(2)The General Council must publish in such manner as it sees fit entries recorded in the register of members’ private interests.

Duties of co-operation etc.U.K.

1D.(1)In exercising its functions, the General Council shall—

(a)have proper regard for—

(i)the interests of persons using or needing the services of registered chiropractors in the United Kingdom, and

(ii)any differing interests of different categories of registered chiropractors;

(b)co-operate, in so far as is appropriate and reasonably practicable, with public bodies or other persons concerned with—

(i)the employment (whether or not under a contract of service) of registered chiropractors,

(ii)the education or training of chiropractors or other health care professionals,

(iii)the regulation of, or the co-ordination of the regulation of, other health or social care professionals,

(iv)the regulation of health services, and

(v)the provision, supervision or management of health services.

(2)In carrying out its duty to co-operate under sub-paragraph (1)(b), the General Council shall have regard to any differing considerations relating to practising as a chiropractor which apply in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.

(3)In sub-paragraph (1), “other health care professionals” means persons regulated by a body mentioned in section 25(3) of the National Health Service Reform and Health Care Professions Act 2002, other than the General Council.]

Powers of the General CouncilU.K.

15(1)Subject to any provision made by or under this Act, the General Council shall have power to do anything which is calculated to facilitate the discharge of its functions or which is incidental or conducive to the discharge of its functions.U.K.

(2)The General Council shall, in particular, have power—

(a)to borrow;

(b)to appoint such staff as it may determine;

(c)to pay its staff such salaries as it may determine;

(d)to pay its staff, and the members of its committees and any of their sub-committees, such allowances and expenses as it may determine;

(e)to make such provision for the payment of such pensions, allowances or gratuities, or such contributions or payments towards provision for such pensions, allowances or gratuities, to or in respect of its staff as it may determine;

(f)to pay its members such allowances and expenses as it may determine;

(g)to establish such sub-committees of any of its committees as it may determine;

(h)subject to any provision made by or under this Act, to regulate the procedure of any of its committees or their sub-committees;

(i)to abolish any of its committees, other than a statutory committee, or any sub-committee of any of its committees;

(j)to delegate to any of its committees any functions of the General Council other than any power to make rules.

[F3(2A)Standing orders of the General Council may make provision with regard to the provisional suspension of a member of the General Council from office, pending the taking of a decision about the suspension or removal from office of the member in accordance with the provisions of an order under section 1(4).]

F4(3). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

F4(4). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(5)Subject to any provision made by or under this Act, the General Council may regulate its own procedure.