56.—F46[(1) The chief executive officer may appoint such and so many members of staff as he or she deems appropriate to be authorised officers to investigate complaints and to assist the chief executive officer and the Preliminary Proceedings Committee in relation to complaints for such period and subject to such terms as the chief executive officer may determine.

(2) Subject to subsection (4), the chief executive officer shall specify the functions to be performed by authorised officers.]

(3) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (2), the functions specified under that subsection may include one or more than one of the following:

F47[(a) investigating complaints,

(aa) interviewing persons for the purposes of assessing the relevance or evidential value of information or documents they wish to give to the chief executive officer or Preliminary Proceedings Committee;]

(b) interviewing persons as to the evidence they propose to give to the Preliminary Proceedings Committee;

(c) recording, in writing or otherwise, the statements given and answers made by persons whilst being so interviewed;

F48[(d) reporting to the chief executive officer;

(e) requesting persons to provide the chief executive officer with statements in writing concerning any matter relevant to the chief executive officer’s or Preliminary Proceedings Committee’s functions and examining statements given in response to the requests;

(f) providing the chief executive officer or Preliminary Proceedings Committee with any other advice or assistance required in relation to the preparation of the chief executive officer’s or Preliminary Proceedings Committee’s reports.]

(4) F49[An authorised officer]—

(a) shall not administer oaths F49[…], but,

(b) may, if authorised by the F49[chief executive officer] to do so, request a person interviewed as described in subsection (3) to sign a record of a statement made or answer given by the person during the interview.

(5) F50[An authorised officer] who makes a request referred to in subsection (4)(b) shall inform the person to whom the request is made of the power under section 64 of the Fitness to Practise Committee to give a direction in relation to the statement or answer the subject of the request.

F51[(6) The chief executive officer shall provide each authorised officer with a warrant—

(a) identifying the authorised officer, and

(b) specifying the functions that the authorised officer has the authority to perform by virtue of subsection (2) and, if applicable, subsections (4)(b) and (5).]

F52[(7) Where an authorised officer performs a function specified in that authorised officer’s warrant provided under subsection (6), the authorised officer shall produce the warrant for inspection at the request of a person in respect of whom the function is performed.]