Yesterday members of the General Chiropractic Council received this letter from Peter Dixon.
“This is a formal notification that an extraordinary meeting of Council is to be held at 17.00 on Monday 3 March 2008 at the GCC offices.
The sole item of business will be the resolution from me for the removal from Council of Richard Lanigan.
The resolution and supporting documentation will be circulated on or before Monday 18 February, thus complying with the requirement in rule 3(2) of the General Chiropractic Council (Constitution and Procedure) Rules 1999.
I will be writing separately to Mr Lanigan to ensure that he is aware of his rights in relation to this matter.
Yours sincerely
Peter Dixon (Chairman)
As yet I have not been told of the charges that are to be brought against me, hardly a first in the annals of GCC disciplinary due process. No doubt as we speak they are being beefed up as Margaret’s lackeys go through my “anonymous” assessments papers looking for evidence or check if I had signed the attendance form after the last meeting.
My position on Council became untenable after the last council meeting, when I could no longer support the principle of collective responsibility as a GCC council member. When I joined Council I gave Peter Dixon my word that if a time came where I could no longer stay silent about how Council was run he would be the first to know. That moment arrived last weekend when I contacted the presidents of the UK chiropractic associations to inform them of what had happened at the previous council meeting. Suffice to say if Peter Dixon’s word was as reliable as mine we would not be in the position we are today.
At this point I do I do not wish to go in to detail. I am still a Council member and a description of events can wait until after my removal from Council. I could not bear if £1 extra was added to any future severance payment to a council employee for anything I might say as a member of Council.
Why have I not resigned? I offered my resignation at my first two meetings, which was not accepted, I did not see much point doing it a third time. I was also aware of how the points Richard Rummary raised in his resignation passed without notice.
When previous council members were hauled before one of Peter’s tribunals, I was refused all information about the hearings in freedom of information requests to Margaret Coats. Being kicked off allows me to present the charges and my defence to the profession, they are the ones that will judge me not Peter Dixon’s hastily arranged kangaroo court.
I hope I am not letting down all those who voted for me. Until last weekend I have been a good council member and worked hard to balance protecting the public with the interests of the profession. I believe being on the outside and speaking freely again, will increases the likelihood of a proper investigation into the activities of the GCC’s former Executive Officer Greg Price and any cover up. The GCC cannot continue to ignore the professions wishes on this matter any longer.
