PCC Dismisses Case on Human Rights grounds

PCC Dismisses Case on Human Rights grounds (31/03/2003)

At a Hearing of the Architects Registration Board’s Professional Conduct Committee in Glasgow on 26 March 2003, the case against architect Gavin Thomson of Crieff, Scotland, was dismissed on the grounds that it breached article six of the Human Rights legislation. Article six provides that a person facing a charge is entitled to a hearing within a reasonable time. This matter dated back to events in the early 1990s, although the complaint was only brought to ARB in 1999 following civil proceedings.

Chairman of the PCC, Peter Verdin, commented:

“We are concerned at delays in these matters. There can be various reasons for delays but the person against whom disciplinary proceedings are brought is entitled to have those proceedings brought within a reasonable time. That is quite clear from article six of the Human Rights legislation and we would like to stress that complaints must be brought and must be processed within a reasonable time, particularly since the enactment of the Human Rights Act.”