Press Round-Up: Regulatory and Professional Discipline - October and November 2024

Healthcare

General Medical Council (GMC)

The GMC has published the latest in a series of updates on preparations for the regulation of physician associates (PAs) and anaesthesia associates (AAs). The most recent update explains the proposed fee (of £320) that PAs and AAs will need to pay to register with the GMC. The GMC has also issued helpful guidance to employers on how they can support their PAs and AAs to apply for registration, including a checklist of evidence that will need to be provided to demonstrate that they have the knowledge, skills and behaviour needed to provide safe patient care.

The GMC intends to publish a report on the proposed rules, standards and guidance for regulating PAs and AAs in early December 2024.

The powers for regulation of PAs and AAs will come into effect on 13 December 2024. Registration will officially open on 16 December 2024.

Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC)

Anthony Omo, General Counsel and Director of Fitness to Practise at the GMC is currently undertaking a three-month secondment at the NMC. His role is to advise the NMC on improvements to its’ fitness to practise processes, with a particular focus on timely case progression.

Speaking at an NMC council meeting recently, Mr Omo explained that the NMC’s thresholds on fitness to practise screening was “not quite at the right place” which was causing delays in progressing cases. The NMC is seeing an increasing number of referrals which is exacerbating the problem. Mr Omo explained that the volume of complaints received by the NMC requires better early-stage assessment of which referrals are best considered by the NMC.  Further details can be found here - https://www.nmc.org.uk/news/news-and-updates/nmc-sets-out-next-steps-toward-change/

General Dental Council (GDC)

The GDC has published its’ first report on the causes of death during fitness to practise investigations between 2019 and 2022. The purpose of collecting this data is to help the GDC learn and understand any improvements that can be made to its’ processes to reduce the negative impact of fitness to practise investigations on the health and wellbeing of its’ registrants.  The full report can be found here.

The GDC has made changes to its fitness to practise processes to speed up the time it takes to investigate clinical practice concerns. The changes follow a successful pilot applied to all single patient clinical practice complaints where the registrant had no previous fitness to practise history. In such cases, the GDC makes an early request to the dental professional for the clinical records (following advice from a clinical dental advisor). The GDC will not request information about a dental professional’s indemnity or employment in these cases. Supplied with the relevant records, the same clinical dental adviser will review all of the information provided and give their opinion. A casework manager will then review the case, and if the treatment is of an appropriate standard, close it with no further action.

The pilot has demonstrated that the approach can significantly reduce the average time it takes to conclude an investigation. In particular, the GDC has seen quicker responses from dental professionals to requests for information. Concluding cases took an average of 13 weeks during the pilot, compared to the 30-week key performance indicator for single clinical incident cases to reach the end of the assessment stage.

 

Legal

Solicitors Regulation Authority

Kingsley Napley’s Regulatory team successfully defended Teacher Stern LLP in proceedings brought by the SRA in the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT).

The SRA alleged that between 2013 and 2016 the Firm allowed payments to be made from its’ client account in circumstances other than in respect of instructions relating to an underlying legal transaction being undertaken by the Firm or in respect of the delivery by the Firm of a service forming part of its normal regulated services, contrary to Rule 14.5 of the SRA Accounts Rules 2011

Following a 4-day hearing, the SDT dismissed the case against Teacher Stern. A costs hearing has been scheduled in the New Year. Delivering the judgment, the SDT stated that the burden of proof rested on the SRA to prove a breach of Rule 14.5 and it had not discharged that burden. The written judgment will be published by 31 December 2024.

This decision is the latest in an increasingly lengthy list of cases in which the SRA has failed to secure a finding in the SDT relating to historical breaches of money laundering and accounts regulations.

You can see more details here.

Bar Standards Board (BSB)

The BSB will re-organise, with effect from 2 December 2024, as part of wider reforms to improve the efficiency of the BSB’s enforcement process.  

The changes include:

• A ‘Strategy, Policy and Insight’ department which will be responsible for identifying future and current risks to the public interest, as defined by the BSB’s Regulatory Objectives, and developing timely consumer-focused strategies to mitigate those risks and to seize opportunities. This department will lead on diversity at the Bar and is responsible for leading updates to the Handbook and Code of Conduct.
• A ‘Regulatory Standards’ department which will ensure that professional standards evolve to support the BSB’s strategy, including responding to changing consumer expectations and new technologies, and the standards expected by the public are reflected and adhered to from qualification to retirement.
• A ‘Regulatory Enforcement’ department which will be responsible for acting to enforce professional standards where these are breached and where enforcement is necessary for the protection of the public and/or as a deterrent to unprofessional behaviour. This department will be accountable for the end-to-end enforcement process.
• A ‘Legal and Information Management’ department which will own legal risks arising from the delivery of the BSB’s regulatory functions, handle litigation, provide legal advice to the BSB, develop decision-making policies and guidance and oversee and support knowledge management systems.
• A ‘Business Planning, Programmes and Engagement’ department which will be responsible for ensuring that the BSB has the business plans and resources needed to deliver its’ strategy and functions, execute major programmes of work and to engage with stakeholders.
• A ‘People and Culture’ department tasked with ensuring that individuals within the BSB are “engaged and empowered, are motivated by compelling and relevant values and work within a diverse, inclusive and proactive culture.”

The changes follow a review into the BSB’s enforcement procedure earlier this year which concluded that although the enforcement procedure adopted by the BSB was appropriate and in line with similar models used in professional regulation, there many areas in which the BSB could improve its’ enforcement remits.

Further details can be seen here.

 

Finance

Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW)

The ICAEW recently conducted a thematic review on firm wide risk assessments (FWRA) required under Regulation 18 of the Money Laundering Regulations 2017 (MLRs) and presented a seminar to the profession on the topic. The ICAEW surveyed a large number of firms and found that whilst a large number of them had a FWRA and there has been a year on year increase in firms completing FWRA, firms are still confusing FWRAs with AML Compliance Reviews (as required under Regulation 21).

The ICAEW found that it is usually sole practitioners and smaller practices which are in breach of Regulation 18. The fact that this confusion pervades notwithstanding that the MLRs came into force six years ago, highlights the importance firms getting to grips with their regulatory obligations to ensure that they to minimise the risk of facilitating money laundering.   

The ICAEW is advancing significant updates to UK audit regulations to enhance transparency, accountability, and quality in the profession. These revisions aim to rebuild public trust following high-profile audit failures and align the profession with modern stakeholder expectations. The proposed regulations address auditor independence, ethical conduct, and engagement with non-financial reporting requirements such as ESG data assurance. Stakeholder consultations on these updates have been robust, ensuring the final measures are practical and effective in achieving these objectives.

Please see here for further detail.

In parallel, the ICAEW has been working closely with the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) to address challenges in public interest audits, particularly in the local government sector. Recent correspondence between the two bodies emphasised a shared commitment to improving audit quality while balancing operational pressures. The ICAEW highlighted its readiness to support the phased introduction of new oversight measures proposed by the FRC, which aim to clear existing backlogs and stabilise the local audit ecosystem.

FRC

The FRC announced its phased approach to reforming local audit oversight, addressing significant backlogs and operational challenges. Routine inspections have been paused for the 2023/24 financial year to allow firms to focus on stabilising processes. This interim measure is part of a broader review of the local audit system, which includes introducing a new framework that prioritises resilience and quality assurance. The reforms align with the FRC’s ongoing efforts to bolster public trust in auditing through enhanced transparency and accountability measures.

Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)

The FCA has intensified its efforts to combat greenwashing by introducing stringent disclosure requirements for ESG-labelled financial products. Asset managers must now provide detailed, verifiable evidence of their sustainability claims to protect consumers and investors from misleading information. This initiative is a critical step in fostering trust and accountability in sustainable finance.

The FCA’s new rules are designed to ensure that ESG-labelled products genuinely meet the advertised sustainability criteria, thereby preventing companies from making exaggerated or false claims about their environmental impact. This move is expected to enhance the credibility of sustainable finance products and boost investor confidence in the market.