49.—(1) A registered person, may apply to the Council to have his or her name removed from the part of the Register or the Register of Veterinary Nurses, as the case may be, in which his or her name is registered and, on receipt of such application and on payment of the appropriate fee prescribed under section 33, the Council may remove the name from the part of the Register or the Register of Veterinary Nurses.

(2) A person, whose name has been removed from the Register or the Register of Veterinary Nurses under subsection (1) may, at any time, apply to the Council to have his or her name restored to either of them as appropriate and, subject to the provisions of this Act and on payment of the appropriate fee fixed under section 33, the Council may restore the name of that person to the part of the Register or the Register of Veterinary Nurses from which it has been removed.

(3) Nothing in this section shall operate to prevent the Council from refusing to restore to a part of the Register or the Register of Veterinary Nurses the name of any person, who is otherwise entitled to be registered, on the grounds of the unfitness of that person to engage in the practice of veterinary medicine or veterinary nursing, as the case may be.

(4) In a case where a registered person applies to the Council under subsection (1) to have his or her name removed from a part of the Register or the Register of Veterinary Nurses, the Council shall not consider the application until it has decided whether or not to so remove the name where—

(a) an application has been made under Part 7 for an inquiry into the conduct of the registered person,

(b) he or she has been convicted by a court in the State or elsewhere, of an offence that, in the opinion of the Council, is such as to render the person unfit to practice veterinary medicine, or

(c) he or she has been prohibited from practising or suspended from the practice of, veterinary medicine either under Part 7 or provisions corresponding to those contained in that Part in force in another state, by reason of a conviction for an offence or serious misconduct in connection with the carrying out of professional duties as a veterinary practitioner or a veterinary nurse, as appropriate.

(5) If the Council decides to refuse to restore the name of a person under subsection (3) or to postpone the consideration of an application under subsection (4), it shall notify the person or the registered person, as appropriate, in writing, as soon as practicable stating the decision, the reason for the decision and the date on which it was made.

(6) A person who receives a notification under subsection (5), may appeal to the High Court against the decision specified in the notification within a period of 3 months beginning on the date of such receipt.

(7) On the hearing of an appeal under this section, the High Court may make—

(a) an order affirming or setting aside any decision of the Council relating to the application for removal or restoration concerned,

(b) an order remitting the application for removal or restoration, as appropriate, with or without directions, to the Council for reconsideration and the making of a new decision in relation to it, or

(c) any other order that it considers appropriate.