Number of business registrants set to soar

Further details on the future of business regulation in optics have been revealed by the General Optical Council including the possibility of having three times as many business registrants.

The GOC estimated last week that an additional 4,000 businesses would need to register under the proposed rules – on top of the 1,650 businesses registered at the end of last year.

Its proposed new system for registration, based around restricted functions instead of protected titles, was approved during a quarterly meeting last month (News 22.11.13). The Council next plans to consult further on the implementation of the proposal, which was not expected before 2016/17.