Omen writes

What has marked the General Optical Council out as being different from its fellow healthcare regulators is its constitution. Fifty years ago when the Council was formed the only way the numerous factions could achieve registration was by compromise.

This produced the mix of lay members, ophthalmologists, ophthalmic opticians, as they were then called, and dispensing opticians. In addition the chairman was to be appointed by the Privy Council probably as much to keep the warring factions apart as anything else! This in itself was unheard of and to this day no optical professional member has served in any of the three principal positions on Council.