§ 38. Mr. Parkasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he has given further consideration to whether or not there should be publicity for service committee cases, in particular the question of whether or not the name of the respondent, be he doctor, dentist, chemist or optician, should be published when found to be in breach of his terms of service; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Geoffrey FinsbergThe National Health Service (Service Committees and Tribunal) Regulations 1974, provide that proceedings should be private.
329WGuidance to family practitioner committees on publicity for completed cases was reconfirmed in 1974: it provides that when my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has reached his decision in a case the family practitioner committee should prepare, for issue to the press, a short summary of the complaint, the reply to it, the findings of the service committee, the family practitioner committee's decision and the Secretary of State's decision. The guidance also states that names and other particulars from which parties could be identified should be omitted.
Certain cases are, however, reported by my right hon. Friend to the practitioner's governing body—for example, the General Medical Council—for any action that it may think necessary; such action may well be made public.