<P> The Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care (PSA), is an independent body accountable to the UK Parliament, which promotes the health and wellbeing of the public and oversees the nine UK healthcare regulators, including the General Dental Council . </P> <P> The PSA review the performance of all regulators on an annual basis, identifying where things are being done well and where improvements can be made . The PSA review all final decisions made by fitness to practise committees . The PSA audit the initial stages of fitness to practise processes to examine whether the regulator is using effective decision - making processes . </P> <P> Concerns about cost - effectiveness, levels of confidence in the GDC and cost - effectiveness of fitness to practise procedures were put to the CEO Evlynne Gilvarry by the BDA in an interview that was published in September 2014 . </P> <P> The GDC recently ran a consultation on the Annual Retention Fee (ARF) policy, which was open from 16 April until 4 June 2014 . The GDC had received over 4000 responses to the consultation on the proposed 64% rise in the Annual Retention, fee, and 97% of responses were critical of the rise . The BDA took the step of appointing Forensic Accountants to analyse the figures presented by the GDC as justification for the rise . The subsequent report was quoted as being' Damning' and resulted in the GDC having to engage KPMG to assess the figures which had been presented as evidence . In September 2014 the GDC's proposed increase in Annual Retention Fees led to threats of legal action from the British Dental Association, the trade union and representative body of UK dentists . </P>

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