64.—(1) The Commission shall establish and maintain a register which shall be known as “the Register of Approved Centres” and is referred to subsequently in this Act as “the Register”.

(2) (a)  There shall be entered in the Register in respect of each centre registered therein the name of the person by whom it is carried on, the address of the premises in which it is carried on, a statement of the number of patients who can be accommodated in the centre, the date on which the registration is to take effect (referred to subsequently in this section as “the date of registration”) and such other (if any) particulars as may be prescribed.

(b)  The Register maintained under this section shall be made available for inspection free of charge by members of the public at all reasonable times.

(3) (a)  The Commission may, on application to it in that behalf by a person who proposes to carry on a centre, register or refuse to register the centre.

(b)  Subject to the provisions of this section, the period of a registration shall be 3 years from the date of registration.

(c)  Where the Commission registers a centre it shall issue a certificate of registration to the registered proprietor thereof.

(4) The Commission may remove a centre from the register.

(5) The Commission shall not—

(a) refuse to register a centre in relation to which an application for its registration has been duly made, or

(b) remove a centre from the Register, unless—

(i) it is of opinion that—

(I) the premises to which the application or, as the case may be, the registration relates do not comply with the regulations, or

(II) the carrying on of the centre will not be or is not in compliance with the regulations,

or

(ii) the registered proprietor has been convicted of an offence under this Part, or

(iii) the registered proprietor has failed or refused to furnish the Commission with information requested by it pursuant to subsection (8) or has furnished the Commission with information that is false or misleading in a material particular, or

(iv) the registered proprietor has, not more than one year before the date from which the registration or removal from the register would take effect, contravened a condition under subsection (6).

(6) (a)  The Commission may—

(i) at the time of registration or subsequently attach to the registration conditions in relation to the carrying on of the centre concerned and such other matters as it considers appropriate having regard to its functions under this Part,

(ii) attach different conditions to the registration of different centres, and

(iii) amend or revoke a condition of registration.

(b)  Without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (a), conditions attached to the registration of a centre may—

(i) require the carrying out of essential maintenance or refurbishment of a centre or of specified areas within a centre,

(ii) require the closure, temporarily or permanently, of a specified area or areas within a centre,

(iii) specify the maximum number of residents which may be accommodated in a centre, or in a specified area or areas within a centre,

(iv) specify the minimum number of staff required to be employed in a centre,

(v) require the introduction or review, as the case may be, of specified policies, protocols and procedures relating to the care and welfare of patients and residents,

(vi) require the introduction or review, as the case may be, of specified policies, protocols and procedures relating to the ordering, prescribing, storing and administration of medicines,

(vii) specify measures to be taken to ensure that patients and residents are informed of their rights under this Act.

(c)  Conditions imposed under this subsection or amendments and revocations under this subsection shall be notified in writing to the registered proprietor of the centre concerned.

(7) An application for registration shall be in a form specified by the Commission.

(8) (a)  The Commission may request an applicant for registration or, as the case may be, a registered proprietor to furnish it with such information as it considers necessary for the purposes of its functions under this Part.

(b)  A person who, whether in pursuance of a request or otherwise, furnishes information to the Commission for the purposes of this Part that is false or misleading in a material particular shall be guilty of an offence unless he or she shows that, at the time the information was furnished to the Commission, he or she was not aware that it was false or misleading in a material particular.

(9) The registered proprietor of a centre who proposes to carry on the centre immediately after the expiration of the period of registration of the centre may apply under subsection (3) to the Commission concerned not less than 2 months before such expiration for the registration of the centre and, if the Commission does not notify him or her before such expiration that it proposes to refuse to register the centre, it shall register the centre and its date of registration shall be the day following the day of such expiration.

(10) (a)  Where an approved centre commences to be carried on by a person other than the registered proprietor—

(i) the centre shall thereupon cease to be registered,

(ii) the person shall (if he or she has not done so before such commencement) apply not later than 4 weeks after it to the Commission for the registration of the centre, and, if the application is granted, the date of registration of the centre shall be that of the day following the day of the cesser aforesaid,

(iii) if the application aforesaid is duly made, and is not refused then, during the period from the commencement aforesaid until the centre is registered, it shall be deemed, for the purposes of section 63 to be registered and there shall be deemed to be attached to the registration any conditions attached to the previous registration.

(b)  A person who contravenes paragraph (a)(ii) shall be guilty of an offence.

(11) (a)  Where the Commission proposes to refuse to register a centre, to remove a centre from the register, to attach a condition to, or amend or revoke a condition attached to, a registration, it shall notify in writing the applicant or the registered proprietor, as the case may be, of its proposal and of the reasons for it.

(b)  A person who has been notified of a proposal under paragraph (a) may, within 21 days of the receipt of the notification, make representations in writing to the Commission and the Commission shall—

(i) before deciding the matter, take into consideration any representations duly made to it under this paragraph in relation to the proposal, and

(ii) notify the person in writing of its decision and of the reasons for it.

(12) A notification of a proposal of the Commission under subsection (11) shall include a statement that the person concerned may make representations to the board within 21 days of the receipt by him or her of the notification and a notification of a decision of the Commission under subsection (11) shall include a statement that the person concerned may appeal to the District Court under section 65 against the decision within 21 days from the receipt by him or her of the notification.

(13) Where, in relation to an approved centre, there is a contravention of a condition of registration, the registered proprietor shall be guilty of an offence.