Two pounds a point to defuse CET timebomb

Last week GOC members met in private and supported proposals made by professional bodies which one member likened to 'VAT payments for CET points management'. Following the meeting, registrar Peter Coe said the addition to the registration fee would be clearly identified, and would be 'illustratively £2 a CET point'.
Cost implications to the GOC are now being analysed, as the proposal will mean the Council collecting payments, rather than Act Consulting, the preferred manager of next year's compulsory scheme.
The controversy over potential charges for CET users and providers began at the start of the year (News, January 9) when Act signalled it would be charging fees to CET providers and their users, optometrists and dispensing opticians.
It was feared that the proposed charges would diminish the number of CET events, limiting the coverage of continuing education at a time when nationwide courses were necessary to make mandatory CET a reality.
Coe told optician that the Council had been 'furiously looking at a different sort of contract with Act', and the Sheffield-based education company had been supportive of the new proposals.
'Originally, Act's income was to come from fees for course organisers being accredited, the individuals participating as lecturers, and the accreditation of attendees,' Coe said. 'But a more efficient way of managing the scheme and its costs is by simply adding it to the registration fee.'
He said as practitioners would need to achieve 12 points a year to maintain their registration, his message to registrants was 'you will pay £1 or £2 a month to get your CET managed which doesn't seem horrendous'.
Act will be responsible for keeping score of the number of points individual practitioners have achieved.