Michael McCarthy (Labour)

I move amendment No. 98:

In page 63, subsection (1), line 31, after "appropriate" to insert "if the Council is of the opinion that the offence is such as to render the person unfit to practise veterinary medicine or veterinary nursing, as the case may be".

As it stands, section 84 is flawed because there is no test, criteria or requirement by which the council can judge a person should be struck off the register by reason of having been convicted of an offence. Our amendment uses the wording set out in section 48(2)(d), which makes it clear that merely being convicted of an offence is not sufficient and that the offence must be one which, in the opinion of the council, renders it inappropriate for the person to practise veterinary medicine or nursing, whichever the case may be.