I sent the following letter to the Privy Council and Department of Health in April 2007 because the GCC council, like the profession is split along partisan lines. Until there is trust between the different factions and there is one “UNION”/Association, representing the interests of practising chiropractors you will not have fair even handed regulation.
Christine Cook
Privy Council Office
2 Carlton Gardens
London
SW1Y 5AA
CC David Wilson, Department of Health, Members of the GCC and the chiropractic profession.
Dear Christine,
I would like to know what is the Privy Council’s current position regarding the statement made by Kenneth Allen a civil servant from the DOH who addressed the chiropractic profession at the British Chiropractic Association Conference on the 9th April 1994?
“While the profession has begun to come together in a small way at one level, through the registration Steering Group, there is a very real concern that, by and large, only a temporary ceasefire has been called between the warring factions in the profession while the Bill is before parliament. What is required is tangible evidence and increasing signs that once the Bill is safely through, things will not go back to as they were a few years ago, or that if one faction were to gain a majority on the General Council, it would not use its clout to force out anyone they don’t like, or dictate standards to the profession. Let me remove any doubt, going back to ‘how things were’ is not an option. For a start, the Privy Council will oversee the General council to ensure that the spirit as well as the letter of the law is observed”
For a number of years the BCA has been obsessed with the “other faction” particularly UCA and McTimoney members. The BCA by far the largest chiropractic association in the UK has lobbied to have non BCA members excluded from European chiropractic organizations and conferences, not to mention what goes on at the GCC. I was a member of the BCA for ten years and resigned because they would not guarantee their own members the right to a fair and open disciplinary hearing or full disclosure of evidence, as enshrined by the European Convention of Human Rights.
The profession were given assurances by the Department of Health in 1994 that; “the Privy Council would oversee the General Chiropractic Council and ensure that the spirit as well as the letter of the law is observed” . The fact Graham Donald the man that processed complaints against the GCC at the Privy Council, has shown up in a non descript consultancy role at the GCC HQ, and was paid £11,475 for two months work, does not inspire confidence
The partisan nature of the profession is clearly demonstrated in the e-mail below which was sent to all BCA members on the day the Electoral Reform Society sent out balloting papers to members of the profession. The e-mail obviously contravenes the spirit of regulation.Is the Privy Council going to remain sitting on its hands like the majority of lay people appointees on the council, as more and more chiropractors come off the register and continue to practice chiropractic, which brings the whole purpose of registration into question? Surely it is time for you provide some firm guidance to the regulators before the new council convenes. I will remove myself from the register in December 2007 if there is no change in attitude at GCC HQ.
Yours Sincerely
Richard Lanigan DC MSc Public Health and Health Promotion.
Subject: GCC ELECTIONS 2007 – BCA CANDIDATES FOR ENGLAND
From: "Michelle Allen" <michelle.allen@chiropractic-uk.co.uk>
Date: Thu, May 10, 2007 9:10 am
To: sue.wakefield@chiropractic-uk.co.uk
sandy.gale@chiropractic-uk.co.uk
ann.goble@chiropractic-uk.co.uk
anne.barlow@chiropractic-uk.co.uk
————————————————————————–
Dear Member,
You are due to receive your ballot paper from Electoral Reform Services who are managing the elections on behalf of the GCC. Please read the instructions with care.The BCA supported candidates for England are:-
SIMON AUSTIN – MATTHEW BENNETT – PETER DIXON – BARRY LEWIS- STEVE WILLIAMS
The Single Transferable Voting System is in operation for England – VOTE FOR 5 CANDIDATES ONLY IN ORDER OF PREFERENCE AND THEN STOP!
There are 5 other candidates standing for these posts:-
*
three of these are the supported candidates of the McTimoney Chiropractic Association;
*
one is an independent McTimoney practitioner
*
one is a non-affiliated independent chiropractor.
PLEASE MAKE SURE THAT YOU CAST YOUR VOTES FOR THE BCA SUPPORTED CANDIDATES TO ENSURE THAT YOUR VOTES ARE NOT WASTED ON CANDIDATES WHO PROMISE CHANGE THAT IS UNREALISTIC AND CANNOT BE DELIVERED.
Sue Wakefield
PS January 2009.I was elected to GCC council in May 2007 and was removed in March 2008. I resigned from the GCC register in December 2008. To Be fair to the BCA, I now realise the MacTimoney politicians are just as bad as the BCA ones. Christine Cook did respond to my letter after the election with the view that now I was on council I could make the necessary changes, little did she know. Today Graham Donald is deputy chair of Investigating committee, even though the Privy Council were of the view that it would not be proper for him to take employment at the GCC.
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