A round up of recent news

1. Shadow Health Minister Anne Milton calls 3-hour meeting in The Grand Committee Room, Westminster Hall on 2nd November for major stakeholders in the regulation debate for counselling and psychotherapy.

2. Videos are now online from The Alliance conference on 11 October. Independent reports can be downloaded by clicking here.

3. Andrew Samuels is standing for election as UKCP Chair – click here for videos and reports on the process, and click here for the on-line discussion on the UKCP web.

4. BACP rejects the HPC Proposals for regulating Counselling and Psychotherapy.

5. The Maresfield Report published: a thorough analysis of the statistics and expense of the HPC Fitness to Practise regime. Legal challenge to HPC via the well-known London law firm Bindmans. NCP publish 72 page report 'Is HPC Legal' by Italian Barrister A Amicarelli

6. The Kings College and Royal Holloway study, 'Statutory Regulation and the Future of Professional Practice in Psychotherapy and Counselling' Funded by the General Medical Council and the Economic and Social Research Council – warn of over-regulation failing to provide the best model of patient care.

7. Compliance? Ambivalence? Rejection? A short book of responses to the HPC Consultation signed by 103 members of the Alliance Conference on 11 Oct was delivered to HPC on Monday 12th October, but no acknowledgement has been received.

8. A pamphlet by Arthur Musgrave containing ‘one half of a dialogue with enthusiasts for HPC regulation’ –a fascinating account of a serious attempt to enter a dialogue with those who are strongly in favour HPC of counsellors and psychotherapists.

9. Andrew Smith, Labour MP for Oxford East put a written question to the Department of Health (22 Oct) asking the Minister “If he will make a statement on the rejection by the British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy of the Health Professions Council's proposed statutory regulation of psychotherapy and counselling.” The rather bland answer can be found by clicking here.

10. The House of Lords Select Committee on Merits of Statutory Instruments argues for less Government reliance on Regulations, in order to leave greater room for the professionalism of practitioners to deliver the objectives of improving learning.

11. 200 members now participate in the Alliance ning blog

12. AHPP (Humanistic Psychology Practitioners) advise members on strategies to avoid data transfer to HPC.

13. Regional groups continue to stage meetings to allow their members time and information to think with – a new meeting in Solent is currently being planned.