An Order of Council is a form of
legislation in the
United Kingdom. It is made by the
Lords of the
Privy Council
A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...
(in practice,
ministers of the Crown).
Orders of Council differ from
Orders in Council in that, while Orders
in Council are orders made by the
monarch meeting with the Privy Council, Orders
of Council are made by the Privy Council in its own right and without requiring the monarch's approval. The preamble of all Orders of Council states that the order was made at a meeting of the council held in
Whitehall; however, in practice they are all approved through correspondence, and no meeting is actually held.
Depending on the subject, Orders of Council can be either made under
prerogative powers, or under authority granted by an
Act of Parliament (and so are
delegated legislation). An example of an order made in exercise of prerogative powers would be one approving changes to the
byelaws of a
chartered institution.
Orders made under statute generally relate to:
* Regulation of the medical and veterinary professions – Orders concerning the constitution, powers and rules of the
General Medical Council
The General Medical Council (GMC) is a public body that maintains the official register of medical practitioners within the United Kingdom. Its chief responsibility is to "protect, promote and maintain the health and safety of the public" by c ...
,
Nursing and Midwifery Council,
General Dental Council
The General Dental Council (GDC) is an organisation which regulates dental professionals in the United Kingdom. It keeps an up-to-date register of all qualified dentists and other dental care professionals such as: dental hygienists, dental thera ...
,
General Optical Council,
Health Professions Council and the Council of the
Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.
* Regulation of the
higher education sector – Orders regarding the constitutions of
universities.
Lists of Orders of Council made since 2000 can be found on th
Privy Council Office website
References
Law of the United Kingdom
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