The General Dental Council (GDC) is on track to open its new register for dental care professionals (DCPs) in July 2006. In the lead up to this, the GDC has made a final call for views on the DCP registration system and how it will all work in practice. The consultation is on the draft Rules - in other words, the subsidiary legislation that details the policies for DCP registration.

The Rules cover issues such as the routes of entry on to the register for the different DCP groups, the registration fee (how much it will be and incentives for early registration), and the titles DCPs will be able to use. Although much of the policy for DCP registration is covered in these draft Rules, some aspects of policy, such as the professional relationships between different members of the dental team, is covered in the GDC's new ethical guidance, and some, such as the tasks which members of each group should be competent to carry out, in new educational curricula.

'DCP registration is one of the most significant developments in dentistry in the last 50 years and will affect all dental professionals,' said Hew Mathewson, president of the GDC. 'This current consultation is a further opportunity for you to have your say on how it will work.' The consultation on the DCP registration draft Rules is posted on the GDC website at www.gdc-uk.org. The deadline for responses is Friday 31 March 2006.