There shall be a Council to be called the Dental Council of New Zealand.

The Council shall consist of—

Subject to the provisions of this Act, every elected or appointed member of the Council shall hold office for a term of three years, but may from time to time be re-elected or reappointed, or may at any time be removed from office by the Governor-General for such cause as he thinks sufficient, or may at any time resign his office by writing addressed to the Secretary to the Council.

If any elected or appointed member of the Council dies or resigns or is removed from office, the vacancy so created shall be deemed to be a casual vacancy.

Every casual vacancy in the office of an elected or appointed member of the Council shall, as soon as practicable, be filled,—

Subject to the provisions of this Act, every member appointed to the Council under subsection (5) of this section shall hold office by virtue of that appointment for only the residue of the term of the vacating member.

Unless he sooner vacates his office as aforesaid, every elected or appointed member of the Council shall continue in office until his successor comes into office, notwithstanding that the term for which he was elected or appointed may have expired.

The powers of the Council shall not be affected by any vacancy in the membership thereof.

Notwithstanding the reconstitution of the Council by section 3 of this Act, the Chairman and every other member of the Council who was in office immediately before the commencement of this Act shall, unless he sooner dies or resigns or is removed from office, continue in office as a member of the Council until the thirtieth day of June, nineteen hundred and sixty-four.

In the event of a casual vacancy in the office of any member of the Council arising before the said thirtieth day of June, nineteen hundred and sixty-four, it shall be filled as if all the other provisions of this Act had not been passed.

The first members of the Council to hold office under section 3 of this Act shall come into office on the first day of July, nineteen hundred and sixty-four.

The Council, at its first meeting held after the first day of July in the year nineteen hundred and sixty-four, and in every third year thereafter, shall appoint one of its members to be Chairman of the Council.

Unless the Chairman sooner resigns from that office or ceases to be a member of the Council, he shall hold the office of Chairman for the term or the remainder of the term for which the members of the Council are elected or appointed, and shall be eligible for reappointment.

The Chairman shall preside at all meetings of the Council at which he is present.

The Chairman appointed in each term shall hold office until his successor is appointed, or for such lesser period as he remains a member of the Council.

If the Chairman ceases to be a member of the Council before the expiration of the period for which he has been appointed, the Council shall appoint some other member in his stead to be Chairman for the residue of the said period.

If at any meeting of the Council the Chairman for the time being is not present, or there is no Chairman of the Council, the Deputy Chairman shall preside at the meeting; and if the Deputy Chairman also is not present at the meeting, or there is no Deputy Chairman, the Council shall appoint some member present to act as Chairman in respect of that meeting, and the person so appointed shall have and may exercise all the powers and functions of the Chairman for the purposes of that meeting.

The Chairman of the Council shall have power to act in all matters on behalf of the Council when the Council is not meeting:

Provided that, when he acts on behalf of the Council in a matter which by this Act requires a decision of the Council, he shall first consult at least two other members of the Council and he shall report to the next meeting of the Council the action that he has taken.

The Council, at any meeting, may appoint one of its members to be the Deputy Chairman of the Council.

Unless the Deputy Chairman sooner resigns from that office, or is appointed to be the Chairman of the Council, or ceases to be a member of the Council, he shall hold the office of Deputy Chairman of the Council for the term or the remainder of the term for which the members of the Council are elected or appointed, and shall be eligible for reappointment.

If the Deputy Chairman is appointed to be the Chairman of the Council, or ceases to be a member of the Council, he shall thereupon vacate the office of Deputy Chairman.

During any vacancy in the office of Chairman or in the absence of the Chairman from New Zealand or while the Chairman is incapacitated by sickness or otherwise, the Deputy Chairman shall have and may exercise and perform all the powers and duties of the Chairman.

There shall from time to time be appointed under the State Services Act 1962 a Secretary to the Dental Council.

The Council shall meet at least once in each calendar year at such times and places as the Chairman, or the Secretary to the Council on the direction of the Chairman or of the Director-General of Health, or any two members of the Council, may from time to time appoint.

Notice of the time and place of every such meeting, signed by the Chairman or by the Secretary to the Council, shall be sent to every member of the Council at least fourteen clear days before the time appointed for that meeting, but failure to comply with the provisions of this subsection shall not invalidate anything done at any meeting of the Council.

At any meeting of the Council four members shall form a quorum.

Every question before the Council shall be determined by a majority of the votes of the members present at the meeting of the Council.

The Chairman shall have a deliberative vote, and, in the case of an equality of votes, shall also have a casting vote.

In the absence from any meeting of the Council of the Director-General and also of his deputy, any officer of the Department of Health may be appointed by the Director-General to act in his stead, and while so acting shall, for the purposes of this Act, have all the powers of the Director-General as a member of the Council. The fact that any officer so acts as a member of the Council shall be sufficient evidence of his authority so to do.

The Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council made on the advice of the Minister given upon the recommendation of the Council, make rules for regulating the procedure of the Council.

In the absence of any such rules, or so far as the rules do not extend, the Council may regulate its procedure as it thinks fit.

There shall be paid to the members of the Council, out of money appropriated by Parliament for the purpose, remuneration by way of fees, salary, or allowances and travelling allowances and expenses in accordance with the Fees and Travelling Allowances Act 1951, and the provisions of that Act shall apply accordingly.

The Council may appoint subcommittees consisting of two or more members of the Council, and may delegate to any such subcommittee any of the functions or powers of the Council under this Act:

Provided that the Council shall not delegate its power to hear a charge of professional misconduct or infamous conduct in a professional respect which has been made against a dentist registered under this Act or the holder of a provisional certificate.

Every such delegation shall be revocable at will, and no such delegation shall prevent the exercise of any power or the performance of any function by the Council.

Unless and until any such delegation is revoked, it shall continue in force according to its tenor.

Except as provided in section 16 of this Act, every person shall be entitled to be registered under this Act who satisfies the Dental Council—

Every person who is entitled to be registered as a dentist under this Act may make application on the prescribed form to the Secretary to the Council to be registered accordingly, and shall at the same time provide such evidence of his professional ability and of his personal character as may be required by the Council.

On receipt by the Secretary of any such application and evidence, he shall forthwith submit the same to the Council for its consideration.

At its first meeting after any such application has been submitted to it or as soon thereafter as practicable, the Council shall consider that application, and shall give such directions to the Secretary to the Council in respect thereof as it thinks fit and as are authorised by this Act.

Before giving any such directions the Council may, if it thinks fit, examine on oath or otherwise the person making the application, or any person objecting thereto, or any other person, with respect to the application; and for the purposes of any such examination the Chairman for the purposes of any meeting of the Council may administer an oath to any person appearing before that meeting.

The Council may also, if it thinks fit, require any person to verify by statutory declaration any statement made by him with respect to any application before the Council, or with respect to any objection to any such application.

If the Council, after considering any such application as aforesaid, is of opinion that the applicant is entitled to be registered, it shall so direct, and the Secretary to the Council shall thereupon register that person, and shall notify him accordingly.

If the Council, after considering any such application as aforesaid, is of the opinion that the applicant is not entitled to be registered, it shall direct accordingly, and the Secretary shall thereupon refuse to register that person, and shall notify him accordingly.

No person shall be entitled as of right to be registered as a dentist under this Act, if he is not a fit person to be so registered by reason of the fact that—

If any applicant who has been refused registration as a dentist is dissatisfied with the direction of the Council, he may apply to the Supreme Court for an order to the Secretary to the Council that the applicant be so registered under this Act, and thereupon the Court may order that the person applying be so registered accordingly, or may make any such other order as it thinks fit, or may refuse to make any order in the matter, and in any such case the costs of the proceedings shall be in the discretion of the Court.

Every person who wilfully procures or attempts to procure himself or any other person to be registered under this Act by making or producing, or causing to be made or produced, any false or fraudulent representation or declaration, either orally or in writing, commits an offence and is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years.

Registration as a dentist shall be effected by the entry in the register kept for the purpose by the Secretary to the Council of the following particulars:

The Secretary to the Council shall, on application in that behalf made to him at any time by a person so registered and on payment of the prescribed fee, issue to that person a certificate of registration.

In the absence of proof to the contrary, a certificate of registration issued under this section shall be sufficient evidence of the registration of the person to whom the certificate relates as at the date thereof, and a certificate under the hand of the Secretary to the Council that any person is not registered as a dentist shall be sufficient evidence of that fact.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Act, if the Council is satisfied—

the Council may issue to him a certificate of temporary registration entitling him to practise as a registered dentist in such institution or place, subject to such restrictions (if any), and for such period, as may be specified in the certificate.

The names of persons to whom certificates of temporary registration are issued under this section shall appear in a separate subdivision of the register.

The provisions of sections 13 to 16 and section 19 of this Act shall apply to every application for temporary registration under this section.

No fee shall be payable in respect of any application for temporary registration under this section or in respect of the issue of any certificate thereunder.

The Council may from time to time, in its discretion, extend the period specified in any certificate under this section if it is satisfied that the circumstances in which it was issued still exist. Any such extension shall be endorsed on the certificate, which for that purpose shall be surrendered by the holder to the Secretary to the Council.

During the period specified in any such certificate, or any such extension thereof, the holder of the certificate shall, unless it has been cancelled under this section, be deemed for the purposes of this Act to be registered as a dentist under this Act.

The Secretary to the Council may cancel any such certificate at any time on the direction of the Council.

Every person commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds who, being the holder of a certificate of temporary registration issued under this section, practises dentistry otherwise than in the institution or place, and subject to the restrictions, specified in the certificate.

Every Registrar of Births and Deaths, on registration of the death of any person who is registered as a dentist under this Act, shall forthwith transmit by post to the Secretary to the Council a notification in writing of that death, with the particulars of the date and place of death; and on the receipt of that notification the Secretary to the Council shall erase the name of the deceased person from the register.

Every person who is registered as a dentist, and who at any time changes his address as appearing in the register, shall, within one month thereafter, send to the Secretary to the Council a notice of his new address specifying where possible the name of the street and the number of the house, and the Secretary shall thereupon correct the entry in the register relating to that person accordingly.

Every such person who fails to comply with the provisions of subsection (1) of this section commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding ten pounds.

Notwithstanding anything in section 14 of the Summary Proceedings Act 1957, any information in respect of any such offence may be laid at any time within three years from the date on which the person changed his address.

The Secretary to the Council may at any time, and shall if the Council so directs, send to any person who is registered as a dentist, by registered letter addressed to him at his address as appearing in the register, an inquiry as to whether or not he desires to have his name retained in the register or has ceased to practise.

If no reply is received to that letter within six months from the posting thereof, or if the letter is not delivered and is returned to the Secretary to the Council, or if the said person registered as a dentist so requests, the Secretary shall, if the Council so directs, remove from the register the name of the person to whom the letter was so sent.

If the Council has reason to believe that any such person has died outside New Zealand, it may direct the Secretary to the Council to erase the name of that person from the register, and the Secretary shall erase that name accordingly.

Any person whose name has been removed from the register in pursuance of this section may apply to the Secretary to the Council to have his name restored to the register, and on proof to the satisfaction of the Council that his name has been so removed the Secretary shall restore to the register the name of that person:

Provided that, if any person is aggrieved by the refusal of the Council to restore his name to the register upon an application in that behalf, he shall have the same right of appeal as if his application had been an application for registration under section 13 of this Act.

Every person who is registered as a dentist, and who obtains any degree or diploma other than that by virtue whereof he is registered, may apply to the Council to amend the register so far as it relates to the qualifications of that person; and on any such application the Council shall, if satisfied that the applicant is entitled to the degree or diploma in respect of which the application is made and that the degree or diploma in respect of which the application is made is of sufficient standing and relevance to warrant it being included in the register, direct the Secretary to the Council to amend the register accordingly, and the Secretary shall thereupon insert in the register particulars as to that degree or diploma. Honorary degrees or diplomas shall be specified as such.

If any person has been registered as a dentist by reason of any false or fraudulent representation or declaration, made either orally or in writing, or if any person not entitled to be registered as aforesaid has been so registered, the Council shall cause the name of that person to be erased from the register, and the fact of that erasure shall be notified by the Secretary to the Council in the Gazette.

If any particulars appearing in the register in respect of the name, qualifications, or address of any such person are proved to the satisfaction of the Council to be or are to the knowledge of the Council false or erroneous in any respect, the Council shall direct the Secretary to the Council to erase those particulars from the register, or otherwise to amend the register, and the Secretary shall thereupon amend the register accordingly.

The provisions of subsection (2) of this section shall apply notwithstanding the fact that at the time when the entry in the register was made the person was actually possessed of the qualifications particulars whereof appear in the register, or that at that time the entry was otherwise correct.

Any person whose name has been erased from the register in pursuance of subsection (1) of this section, or any person the particulars of whose qualifications have been altered in pursuance of subsection (2) of this section, may apply to the Supreme Court for an order to the Secretary to the Council for the restoration of his name to the register, or for the restoration to the register of any particulars as to his qualifications; and thereupon the Court may make such order in the matter as it thinks fit or may refuse to make any order, and in any such case the costs of the proceedings shall be in the discretion of the Court.

If the Council is satisfied that the name of any person who has been registered as a dentist in New Zealand because he possessed the qualification mentioned in paragraph (b) of section 12 of this Act has since been removed from any register of dentists in the country in which his foreign degree, diploma, or qualification was granted, it may, with the consent in writing of the Attorney-General, by writing under the hand of the Chairman, direct the removal of his name from the register, and the name shall be removed accordingly.

Notice of its intention to direct the removal of any name from the register pursuant to this section shall be given by the Council to the person affected, either personally or, if his address is unknown, by advertisement in such manner as the Council thinks sufficient, and his name shall not be removed from the register before the expiration of one month from the date of the notice.

Any person whose name has been removed from the register by direction of the Council acting or purporting to act under the authority of this section may appeal to the Supreme Court, which may make such order in the matter as it thinks just, having regard to the merits of the case and to the public welfare.

If the name of any medical practitioner who is also registered as a dentist under this Act is at any time after the commencement of this Act removed from the register of medical practitioners, the Council, with the consent of the Attorney-General, may remove his name from the register of dentists.

Any person whose name is removed from the register of dentists under the authority of subsection (4) of this section shall be entitled, on application, to be reregistered if his name is at any time thereafter restored to the register of medical practitioners.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Act, the Secretary to the Council shall, if so directed by the Chairman of the Council, issue to a person who has applied for registration as a dentist under this Act a provisional certificate which shall entitle that person, pending the consideration of his application by the Council, to practise as a dentist to the extent to which he would be entitled if he had been registered in the manner specified in his application.

Every such certificate shall, unless it has been cancelled or has lapsed, remain in force for the period stated therein, not exceeding six months, but any such certificate may from time to time be renewed.

The holder of any such certificate shall, while the certificate remains in force, be deemed for all purposes to be registered as a dentist.

The Secretary to the Council may cancel any provisional certificate at any time on the direction of the Council.

In this section—

In any case where any person who is a registered dentist or the holder of a provisional certificate is a patient of a hospital of which there is a Medical Superintendent, if the Medical Superintendent considers that the person is (owing to mental or physical disability) unable to perform his professional duties satisfactorily, and that, because he may attempt to perform those duties, it is necessary in the public interest to prevent him from so doing, the Medical Superintendent shall forthwith give written notice to the Secretary to the Council of all the circumstances.

In any case where any person who is a registered dentist or the holder of a provisional certificate is not a patient of a hospital of which there is a Medical Superintendent, if any registered medical practitioner is in attendance on that person and considers that the person is (owing to mental or physical disability) unable to perform his professional duties satisfactorily, and that, because he may attempt to perform those duties, it is necessary in the public interest to prevent him from so doing, the medical practitioner in attendance on that person shall forthwith give written notice to the Secretary to the Council of all the circumstances.

In any case where any Medical Superintendent or registered medical practitioner contemplates giving any such written notice to the Secretary to the Council, he may seek whatever medical advice, whether psychiatric or otherwise, he considers appropriate to assist him in forming his opinion. Any written notice thereafter so given shall mention any difference between any such advice and the views of the Medical Superintendent or registered medical practitioner as set out in the notice.

Upon receipt of any such notice, the Secretary to the Council shall forthwith take all steps necessary to have it considered by the Council or by a committee of the Council set up under subsection (9) of this section.

Whether or not the Secretary to the Council has received any such written notice as aforesaid in connection with the matter, if the Council or any committee set up by it under subsection (9) of this section is satisfied that any person who is a registered dentist or the holder of a provisional certificate is (owing to mental or physical disability) unable to perform his professional duties satisfactorily, and that, because he may attempt to perform those duties, it is necessary in the public interest to prevent him from so doing, the Council or committee may, by writing under the hand of the Chairman or Deputy Chairman, suspend that person from practice as a registered dentist or as the holder of a provisional certificate, as the case may be.

Any such suspension shall take effect forthwith upon its being made, but may at any time be revoked—

While any person is so suspended from practice under this section, that person shall be deemed for the purposes of this Act, other than Part IV, not to be a registered dentist or the holder of a provisional certificate, as the case may be.

The Council may from time to time, for the purposes of this section, appoint a committee comprising the Chairman or Deputy Chairman of the Council and at least one other member of the Council. The appointment of any such committee may be revoked by the Council at any time.

The register kept by the Secretary to the Council under this Act shall at all reasonable times be open to inspection by the public at the office of the Secretary to the Council in Wellington.

Except as otherwise expressly provided in this Act, no person, unless he is registered as a dentist under this Act or is the holder of a provisional certificate, shall practise as a dentist or hold himself out, whether directly or by implication, as practising or as being entitled to practise dentistry.

Any person who acts in contravention of the provisions of this section commits an offence and is liable, on summary conviction, in respect of each such offence, to a fine not exceeding two hundred pounds.

Nothing in this section shall operate to prevent—

Subject to the provisions of section 30 of this Act, no dentist shall permit any unregistered person to carry on the practice of dentistry in his name or on his behalf, whether on the premises where the dentist is practising or elsewhere.

Every dentist who acts in contravention of this section commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding two hundred pounds.

If any company carries on the practice of dentistry otherwise than as authorised by this section, the company and every director of the company and every person concerned in the management of the company commits an offence, and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds and to a further fine not exceeding five pounds for every day during which the offence continues after the conviction for any such offence of the company or of any director or other person as aforesaid.

If any company satisfies the Council that it had been carrying on the practice of dentistry in New Zealand for not less than seven months immediately before the first day of June, nineteen hundred and thirty-seven, and that (except as provided in section 33 of this Act) all its members are registered dentists, it may lawfully continue to carry on the practice of dentistry in accordance with the provisions of this section, but not otherwise.

The authority conferred by this section shall cease and determine—

No company shall carry on the practice of dentistry under the authority of this section at any time after the expiration of ten years from the date when the last of its members as at the first day of June, nineteen hundred and thirty-seven, has ceased to be a member.

Where any company is carrying on the practice of dentistry pursuant to the authority of this section, the names and descriptions of all the members of that company shall at all times be legibly and conspicuously displayed in or on the premises in which the practice of dentistry is being carried on.

For the purpose of this section the term “company” means a company formed and registered under the Companies Act 1955 or any former Companies Act, and includes any corporation other than a company so formed and registered.

On the death (whether before or after the commencement of this Act) of any dentist who at the time of his death is actually carrying on the practice of dentistry, or is a member of a company to which subsection (2) of section 32 of this Act applies, it shall be lawful for his personal representative (with a view to the disposal of the goodwill or the interest in the company) to continue the practice of dentistry under the management of a dentist, or to remain a member of the company while it is under the management of a dentist, for not more than five years from the date of death in the case of a dentist who dies after the commencement of this Act, or for not more than ten years from the date of death in the case of a dentist who has died before the commencement of this Act; and, if it is shown to the satisfaction of the Council that it is or may be impracticable satisfactorily to dispose of the practice or interest within the period, for such further period or periods as may be allowed by the Council.

Four registered dentists who are not members of the Council shall from time to time, on the recommendation of the Dental Council, be appointed in accordance with this section to be Investigation Committee members, and one of those members shall be so appointed as Convener of Investigation Committees.

The Investigation Committee members shall be appointed by the Governor-General, and shall hold office for a period of three years, and may from time to time be reappointed, or may be at any time removed from office by the Governor-General for such cause as he thinks sufficient, or may at any time resign from office by writing addressed to the Secretary to the Council.

If any Investigation Committee member dies or resigns or is removed from office, the vacancy so created shall be filled in the manner in which the appointment to the vacant office was originally made. Every person so appointed shall be appointed for the residue of the term for which his predecessor was appointed.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this section, every Investigation Committee member, unless he sooner dies or vacates office as aforesaid, shall continue to hold office until his successor comes into office.

Except as otherwise provided by rules made under section 37 of this Act, or in any case where the Solicitor-General otherwise directs, every person who seeks to make a formal complaint that any person who is registered as a dentist, or who is the holder of a certificate of temporary registration under section 20 of this Act or of a provisional certificate, has been guilty of professional misconduct or infamous conduct in a professional respect, shall make the complaint to a Crown Solicitor in the Supreme Court district in which the incident involved in the complaint arose:

Provided that, if for the time being there is no available Crown Solicitor in the district, the complaint may be made to the Solicitor-General who shall refer it to such Crown Solicitor as he thinks fit.

Every such complaint (other than a complaint made by a Court) shall be in writing, and shall, if the Crown Solicitor to whom it is made or referred so requires, be supported by such statutory declarations as that Crown Solicitor may require.

Where any Crown Solicitor has received any written complaint under this section and such statutory declarations as he may require under subsection (2) of this section, he shall make such preliminary investigations as may be necessary to satisfy himself that the complaint is of such a nature and is supported by such evidence as to warrant investigation by an Investigation Committee, and upon being so satisfied he shall notify the Convener of Investigation Committees of the complaint.

Upon being notified by a Crown Solicitor of any such complaint, the Convener of Investigation Committees shall, in accordance with this section, set up an Investigation Committee; and that Committee shall investigate the complaint and report its finding to the Solicitor-General.

The Investigation Committee to investigate and report on any complaint shall consist of:

Provided that, if any such member dies or is for any reason unable or unwilling to act as a member, another person qualified for appointment may be so appointed in his place.

Before an Investigation Committee reports its findings in respect of a complaint to the Solicitor-General or makes any final decision in respect of the findings—

The report to the Solicitor-General of the findings of the Investigation Committee shall be made by the Chairman of the Committee, and shall set out:

The report shall be accompanied by copies of all statutory declarations and statements relating to the complaint that have been received by the Investigation Committee.

Where the report shows that the majority of the members of the Investigation Committee recommend the taking of any further action in respect of the complaint, it shall be the duty of the Solicitor-General to take that action or arrange for it to be taken.

Subject to the provisions of this Act, the Council may from time to time make rules for regulating the procedure of Investigation Committees, and prescribing classes of cases which need not be referred to any such Committee before they are considered by the Council.

Subject to the provisions of this Act, in the absence of any such rules, or so far as the rules do not extend, every Investigation Committee may regulate its procedure as it thinks fit.

There shall be paid, out of money appropriated by Parliament for the purpose,—

If any person who is registered as a dentist—

the Council may, if it thinks fit, exercise in respect of that person all or any of the disciplinary powers conferred on it by subsection (2) of this section.

The disciplinary powers which the Council may so exercise in respect of any such person, if it thinks fit, shall be as follows:

In giving or withholding consent under paragraph (c) of subsection (2) of this section, the Attorney-General shall consider only the gravity and nature of the impropriety or conduct charged, and not the question whether the person has in fact been guilty of the impropriety or conduct.

No person shall be suspended from practice as a dentist, and the name of no person shall be removed from the register,—

In any inquiry under paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of this section, any finding of fact which is shown to have been made in any proceedings under the Divorce and Matrimonial Causes Act 1928, being proceedings in the Supreme Court of New Zealand or on appeal from a decision in any such proceedings, shall be conclusive evidence of the fact found.

If any University or institution, having granted to any person a degree or diploma or other qualification registerable under this Act, exercises any power conferred by law of striking off the name of that person and notifies to the Council the fact of the striking off,—

No person shall be deemed guilty of professional misconduct or of infamous conduct in a professional respect, by reason only of his having adopted and practised any theory of dentistry or dental surgery, if in so doing he has acted honestly and in good faith.

Every monetary penalty imposed, and all costs and expenses payable, under this section shall be recoverable as a debt due to the Crown, and shall be paid into the Public Account and form part of the Consolidated Fund.

While any order of suspension under this section remains in force, the person shall be deemed for the purposes of this Act, other than Part IV, not to be a registered dentist, but forthwith on the expiry of the order his rights and privileges as a registered dentist shall be revived as from the date of the expiry.

There shall be a right of appeal to the Supreme Court in accordance with section 40 of this Act from an order of suspension or censure or the imposition of a penalty or of a liability to pay costs and expenses under this section.

An order of suspension or censure shall not take effect, and no penalty or costs or expenses shall be payable, in any case until the expiration of twenty-eight days after the date of the notification by the Council to the person affected of the making of the order. If within the said period of twenty-eight days the person gives due notice of appeal to the Supreme Court, the order shall not take effect, and no penalty or costs or expenses shall be payable, unless and until it is confirmed by the Supreme Court or the appeal is for any reason dismissed by that Court:

Provided that, unless the Supreme Court otherwise orders, the period of suspension specified in the order shall commence, and the penalty of costs or expenses specified in the order shall be payable, on the day when the order commences to have effect.

In any order under this section for the removal from the register of the name of any such person, the Court may fix a time after which the person whose name is so removed as aforesaid may apply for reregistration under this Act. At the expiration of that time the person whose name has been so removed may apply for reregistration, and all the provisions of this Act as to registration shall, so far as they are applicable, apply to reregistration under this section.

If the Court does not fix any such time, the Council may refuse to consider any such application for such time as it thinks fit:

Provided that any person aggrieved by the refusal of the Council to consider that application may apply to the Court for an order directing the Council to consider that application, or directing the Secretary to the Council to enter in the register the name of that person, and thereupon the Court may make such order in the matter as it thinks fit.

Every such appeal to the Supreme Court under subsection (11) of section 39 of this Act shall be by way of rehearing; and, unless the Court otherwise directs, on any such rehearing the record of the evidence adduced at the hearing before the Dental Council shall be placed before the Court, and it shall not be permissible to recall witnesses who gave evidence before the Council or to call other witnesses.

On any such appeal the Court may make such order or recommendation as it thinks proper, having regard to the merits of the case and to the public welfare.

This section applies to any contract entered into by any person with the Crown (whether before or after the commencement of this Act) whereby that person has undertaken to serve for such period or periods as may be specified in the contract in either or both of the following types of employment, namely, employment as a registered dentist in the service of a Hospital Board, or such employment (whether in the service of a Hospital Board or otherwise) as the Director-General of Health may require.

Where any registered dentist has committed a wilful breach of any such undertaking in a contract to which this section applies, the Dental Council shall have and may exercise the powers conferred on it by section 39 of this Act other than its powers under paragraphs (c) and (d) of subsection (2) of that section; and the provisions of this Act shall, so far as they are applicable and with any necessary modifications, apply accordingly as if such a breach were professional misconduct.

Where a registered dentist has committed any such wilful breach, it is hereby declared, without limiting any other powers of the Minister or of the Dental Council, that the Minister may, on the recommendation of the Dental Council, for such period not exceeding six months as the Minister on such recommendation may fix, exclude the registered dentist from participation in any scheme under Part III of the Social Security Act 1938 whereby payments are made from the Social Security Fund, whether to the registered dentist or to any other person, in respect of the provision of dental benefits by registered dentists.

The Dental Council may appoint a legal assessor who may be present at any inquiry or appeal and may then or at any time previously or subsequently advise the Council on matters of law, procedure, and evidence relating thereto.

The Dental Council or any Investigation Committee, by notice in writing under the hand of its Chairman or Secretary, may require any person to attend and give evidence before it at any inquiry under this Act, and to produce all books and documents in that person’s custody or under his control relating to the subject-matter of any such inquiry.

The Council or Committee may require any such evidence to be given on oath, and either orally or in writing, and for that purpose the Chairman of the Council or Committee may administer an oath.

Every person who without lawful justification refuses or fails to give evidence when required to do so by the Dental Council or any Investigation Committee, or to answer truly and fully any question put to him by the Council or Committee, or to produce to the Council or Committee any book or document required of him, commits an offence against this section, and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds.

Witnesses and counsel shall have the same privileges and immunities in relation to inquiries before the Dental Council or any Investigation Committee as if they were proceedings in a Court of law.

Every witness giving evidence or intending to give evidence at the hearing of any inquiry under this Act shall be entitled in the discretion of the Dental Council or Investigation Committee to be paid, out of money appropriated by Parliament for the purpose, such sum for his expenses and loss of time as the Council or Committee may determine.

Where—

the Secretary to the Council shall, if the Council in its discretion so directs, cause a notice stating the effect of the order to be sent to every registered dentist.

Neither the Dental Council, nor any Investigation Committee, nor any member or servant of the same, shall be under any criminal or civil liability whatsoever in respect of anything done or omitted to be done or of any words spoken or written at or for the purposes of the hearing of any inquiry or other proceedings under this Act unless it is proved to the satisfaction of the Court before which any proceedings are taken that the defendant in the proceedings has acted in bad faith.

The Secretary to the Council, or any officer of the Department of Health authorised in that behalf by the Director-General of Health, as the case may be, shall take and receive such fees in respect of such matters under this Act as are from time to time prescribed by regulations under this Act.

Until the appropriate fee has been paid, the Secretary to the Council or any such officer of the Department of Health may decline to do any act, or to permit any act to be done, or to receive any document in respect of which that fee is payable.

All fees payable to the Dental Council shall be paid to the Public Account and form part of the Consolidated Fund.

In this section the term “year” means the period of twelve months beginning on the first day of June and ending with the thirty-first day of May next following.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the foregoing provisions of this Act, no person registered as a dentist shall be entitled to practise dentistry unless he is the holder of an annual practising certificate issued in accordance with this section.

Every person who practises dentistry in breach of subsection (2) of this section commits an offence, and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding five pounds for every day during which the offence continues.

Subject to the payment of the prescribed fee, the Secretary, on application in that behalf by any registered dentist, shall issue to him an annual practising certificate, and any such certificate shall be in force during the year in respect of which it is issued:

Provided that, if at any time during the currency of any such certificate the holder thereof ceases to be registered as a dentist, the certificate shall be deemed to be cancelled.

Every person entitled to receive an annual practising certificate under this section shall be deemed to have obtained that certificate when he has duly applied to the Secretary for the same and has paid the prescribed fee.

Nothing in this section shall apply with respect to—

If so requested by the Council in any case, the Director-General may at any time by himself, or by any person authorised by him in that behalf, enter and inspect any premises used by a registered dentist for the practice of dentistry, and every part of any such premises.

Every person commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds who wilfully obstructs, hinders, or resists any person in the exercise of the powers conferred on him by or under this section.

Every person commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding ten pounds for each day during which the offence continues who, not being registered under this Act, uses or causes or permits to be used in connection with his business any written words, titles, or initials, or any abbreviation of any words, titles, or initials, implying that he is registered under this Act or that he is qualified to practise dentistry.

Except as provided in section 20 of this Act, no person shall hold any appointment as a dental surgeon or other dental officer in the New Zealand armed forces, or in any institution or separate institution under the Hospitals Act 1957, or in any mental hospital, or in any prison, or in any other public institution, or to any friendly or other society for affording mutual relief in sickness, infirmity, or old age, or as a Dental Officer in the Department of Health or in any other Government Department, unless he is a registered dentist.

Every person who accepts or holds any appointment for which he is disqualified by reason of this section commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds.

All references in any Act to a dentist, or registered dentist, or duly qualified dentist shall, unless a different intention appears, be deemed to be references to a registered dental practitioner under this Act or, subject to the provisions of this Act, to a person holding a provisional certificate for the time being in force under section 27 of this Act.

The Governor-General may from time to time, by Order in Council, make regulations for all or any of the following purposes:

The enactments specified in the Schedule to this Act are hereby repealed.