General Medical Council

The General Medical Council (GMC) is a fee-based registered charity with statutory obligation to maintain a register of medical practitioners within the United Kingdom.Application for registration as a charity by the General Medical Council - 2 April 2001 Registration with the GMC confers a number of privileges and duties.GMC website – responsibilities and privileges of registered doctors

 Purpose 
There is a legal requirement for a register, the list of  "registered medical practitioners" in Britain. - GMC website. That is the main job of the GMC. The GMC controls entry to the List of Registered Medical Practitioners ("the medical register"). "The main objective of the General Council in exercising their functions is to protect, promote and maintain the health and safety of the public".The Medical Act 1983 (amended)

Secondly, the GMC regulates and sets the standards for medical schools in the UK. It liaises with other nations' medical and university regulatory bodies over medical schools overseas, leading to some qualifications being mutually recognised. Since 2010, it also regulates postgraduate medical education.

Thirdly, the GMC is responsible for a licensing and revalidation system for all practising doctors in the UK, separate from the registration system. This was done by order of the Privy Council on 3 December 2012.  - GMC website.

 Right to free choice 
Citizens have a right to free choice in a democracy. Therefore, medical activities by an unregistered person is not absolutely banned:

However, most activities connected with being a doctor are effectively banned:

 References 

Category:Medical and health organisations in the United Kingdom