The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 276 No 7397 p485
22 April 2006

Society summary

Society consults branches on response to Section 60 Order

Publication of the draft Pharmacists and Pharmacy Technicians Order under Section 60 of the Health Act 1999 is allowing the Royal Pharmaceutical Society to consult widely on the Department of Health consultation on the proposed new legislation. Special meetings are being held in a number of the Society’s branches at which Council members and senior members of staff can determine the views of members locally on the draft Order (see Diary, p490 PDF (250K)).

Although the Council has been aware of many aspects of the proposed legislation, it has until now been able to discuss the issues only in confidential session.

At the April Council meeting, in public session, the President, Hemant Patel, welcomed the fact that the draft Order had finally been published. He said that Council members and Society staff had worked hard to influence the shape of the document. Since 2002 the Council had scrutinised all areas of regulatory machinery and produced hundreds of decisions on how they should be reformed. All these decisions had been passed to the Department of Health to inform the drafting of the legislation.

The Society had been in liaison with the Department ever since to explain the Society’s existing functions and governance framework and to ensure maximum possible reflection of the Council’s decisions in the draft Order. Although it hoped for some changes, the Society’s efforts had borne important fruit.

More recently, a working group had been helping to inform response to the consultation, issuing materials through The Pharmaceutical Journal and the Society’s website.

The President thanked everyone who had helped the Society reach this stage. In particular, he thanked the small dedicated team that had put in a tremendous effort over a long period and those Council members who had had an input into the process.

The Secretary and Registrar, Ann Lewis, said that the Society looked forward to the draft Order’s speedy progression into law once the 12-week consultation ended on 19 June.