The Statutory Committee of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain was established under Section 7 of the Pharmacy Act 1954. In accordance with Section 8 of that Act, the Statutory Committee considered any convictions received by, or allegations of misconduct made against, a pharmacist or a person applying for registration with the Society.
Under Section 80 of the Medicines Act 1968, the Statutory Committee also considered cases against companies carrying on a retail pharmacy business where:
On 30 March 2007 new fitness to practise provisions made under the Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians Order 2007 ("the Order"), and new fitness to practise Rules, came into force.
Schedule 2 of the Order sets out detailed transitional provisions that apply to allegations referred to the Statutory Committee before 30 March 2007. Inquiries ordered by the Chairman of the Statutory Committee and not yet heard shall be disposed of by the Disciplinary Committee in accordance with the regulations that governed the Statutory Committee (SI 1978/20), and the Pharmacy Act 1954 ("the old Rules").
For further information on the Disciplinary Committee, click here.
Contact:
Tel: 020 7572 2618For more information, click on the links below:
For the 2006 Statutory Committee Annual Report, click here
For the 2005 Statutory Committee Annual Report, click here
A practice direction relating to circumstances in which delay is alleged was issued by the Chairman of the Statutory Committee in September 2006.
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In October 2005 the Statutory Committee approved a listing protocol.
For more information, click here
A practice direction relating to the provision of documentary evidence to the Statutory Committee was issued by the Chairman in October 2005.
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A practice direction relating to witnesses of fact was issued by the chairman of the Statutory Committee in January 2005.
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For information relating to recent Statutory Committee inquiries, click on the links below:
The proceedings at Statutory Committee inquiries are similar to those of a Court, and are governed by rules of procedure. These are the Pharmaceutical Society (Statutory Committee) Order of Council 1978 (SI 1978/20). Any person appearing before the Statutory Committee will be sent a copy of these Rules.
For the rules of procedure, click here
Statutory Committee inquiries are usually heard in public and reported in the press.
A Notice of Inquiry which sets out the allegations against the pharmacist/corporate pharmacy owner has to be served at least 28 days before the date the inquiry is scheduled to be heard. The pharmacist can choose whether or not to attend the hearing and/or to be represented. It is usual practice for both written evidence and live witness evidence to be heard at the inquiry.
The Society will present its case against the pharmacist or company first. Any witnesses are examined in chief by the Society’s lawyer, then cross-examined by the pharmacist/his lawyer. The Committee have the opportunity to put any additional questions. The pharmacist/company or his representative then presents his/its case in a similar way. On the basis of the evidence before them, the members of the Committee will decide whether the facts alleged by the Society have been proved, whether the facts amount to misconduct and if so, what sanction should be imposed. Before the Committee makes any decision on sanction, the pharmacist/company will be invited to address the Committee on any mitigating factors it should take into account.
The burden of proof rests on the Society to prove its case against the pharmacist or company. The standard of proof used in the proceedings is the civil standard.
The Committee has the power to:
The Statutory Committee issued guidelines on how it would decide on the appropriate sanction in any particular case. The Disciplinary Committee will have regard to this guidance when hearing Statutory Committee inquiries.
For a copy of the Indicative Sanctions Guidance, click here
Section 10 of the Pharmacy Act 1954 provides a right of appeal from decisions of the Statutory Committee (or the Disciplinary Committee hearing a Statutory Committee inquiry). The appeal is heard at the High Court. Any person wishing to appeal a decision of the Statutory Committee should contact the High Court for information on the procedure to be followed. The High Court has the power to award costs against the party who loses the appeal.
For the Courts Service website, click here
Where the Statutory Committee (or the Disciplinary Committee hearing a Statutory Committee inquiry) orders the removal of a pharmacist’s name from the Register, that decision does not take effect until three months later. If the pharmacist decides to appeal the decision to the High Court within that three month period, his name will remain on the Register unless and until the High Court upholds the decision.
The Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence (CHRE) was set up in April 2003. Its main purpose is to promote the interests of patients and the general public by working with regulators in the health professions.
The CHRE was set up under the NHS Reform and Healthcare Professions Act 2002. Under Section 29 of that act, the CHRE has the power to refer to the High Court any decision taken by the Society’s Statutory Committee which it considers to be "unduly lenient" or should not have been made. All decisions of the Society’s Statutory Committee are automatically sent to the CHRE for information.
For more information about the CHRE, click here.
All applications for restoration following a direction for removal from the Register, will be considered by the new Disciplinary Committee in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Order and the 2007 Rules.
For further information, please click here.
An information pack is sent in advance to anyone who is asked to be a witness for the Society at a Statutory Committee inquiry.
For a copy of the witness pack, click here