GMC's Annual Retention Fee

The Annual Retention Fee is set to change in April 2009.

Contents

• Introduction
• Controlling costs and maximising efficiency
• Conclusion
  

Introduction

In 2009 we will face a number of significant challenges, which will place additional pressure on our resources, in particular:

• The introduction of the licence to practise on 16 November 2009.
• The continued development and implementation of revalidation.
• Ongoing costs associated with essential investment in infrastructure and systems.
• A significant, unplanned, increase in referrals by case examiners to fitness to practise panels. If this trend continues, and we are to continue to meet our performance targets, there will be significant increases in fitness to practise costs.
• One-off costs in 2009 as a result of Manchester office relocation.

Taking those factors into account, expenditure in 2009 is likely to be £83.3 million, and so Council agreed to set the Annual Retention fee at £410 to provide sufficient resources to undertake all of our planned activities.

Controlling costs and maximising efficiency

Each individual budget in the GMC has been scrutinised and significant reductions have been made by stripping out discretionary expenditure and identifying opportunities for business efficiencies and improved effectiveness. Wherever possible, our approach has been to reduce administrative costs and overheads, to release resources for front-line service delivery. We will continue this approach through the year, and in particular we will:

• Review temporary staffing levels and continue to review vacant posts before they are filled.
• Seek opportunities to reduce our office costs through efficiency gains.
• Reduce our travel costs through a combination of measures to improve economy and effectiveness.
• Seek reductions in professional fees and consultancy costs primarily through negotiation.

Conclusion

The GMC’s first duty as a regulator is the protection of patients, nevertheless we also have a duty to provide a cost effective regulatory system. Enhancing the economy, efficiency and effectiveness of all the work we do is of central importance. We recognise that this needs to be balanced against the progress we seek to make through the challenging work programme set out in our business plan, and work we foresee in the current Council’s term of office.