2010 budget and business plan agreed

The 2010 Business Plan and supporting budget, agreed by Council, sets out an ambitious programme of work for the GMC to deliver over the next 12 months.

A key focus for the organisation remains continuing with the major programme of work to ensure we are ready to start to introduce revalidation from 2011.

In 2010 we will:

• Publish new guidance on end of life care and research; issue revised guidance on video and audio recordings of patients; review our Management for Doctors guidance; and begin a review of Good Medical Practice.
• Implement the standards and outcomes in Tomorrow’s Doctors 2009 and carry out quality assurance reviews of basic medical education at two medical schools and foundation training at eight postgraduate deaneries.
• Complete all work necessary to deliver the merger of PMETB with the GMC and  develop, and consult on, a new fee structure following the merger of PMETB.
• Work with the Office of the Health Professions Adjudicator to prepare for the transfer of the GMC’s adjudication functions.

Staff will continue to provide a high quality day to day service which includes:

• dealing with over 230,000 calls to the Manchester based Contact Centre
• processing and granting over 11,000 initial registrations
• dealing with over 10,000 doctors visiting the GMC, including identity checks
• dealing with 70,000 faxes, letter and email enquiries
• supporting a website that receives nearly 6 million visits each year

To ensure effective delivery of the business plan fully registered and licensed doctors will pay an additional £10 for registration taking the total annual cost to £420. The increase will take effect from 1 April 2010.

The cost of provisional registration will rise by £5 from £140 to £145. Registration without a licence will remain the same at £145.

From the 1 April 2010 the threshold for eligibility for the lower income discount will be £22,190. The lower income discount provides a 50% reduction in the Annual Retention Fee for those with a total annual income less that the starting salary for a doctor in Foundation Year 1.

Since 2003 the GMC has undertaken a significant programme of efficiency savings including; transferring the majority of the GMC’s Fitness to Practise and Registration activities to Manchester; increasing the capacity of the in house legal team; improving the utilisation of hearing rooms in adjudication. Further efficiency gains will be sought across the organisation of between 3 – 5 % in 2010.

Professor Peter Rubin, Chair of the GMC said:

“Doctors must have confidence that their regulator can deliver a high quality service at a reasonable cost. The modest increase in the annual retention fee is a prudent and sensible decision at this time.”

ENDS