43.—(1) Witnesses are to be required to take an oath, or to affirm, before giving their oral evidence.
(2) The Council may not compel the person concerned to be a witness.
(3) A party may not call a person to be a witness unless that party has provided to the other party a written statement of evidence provided by the witness which meets the requirements of rule 24, at least 7 days before the date of the hearing, unless the chair determines otherwise.
(4) The Committee may, upon the application of the party calling the witness, direct that any details which may identify that witness must not be revealed in public.
(5) Where a witness’s first language is not English, the Committee may direct that their evidence be given through an interpreter.
(6) Witnesses other than the person concerned—
(a)must first be examined by the party calling them;
(b)may be cross-examined;
(c)may then be re-examined by the party calling them; and
(d)may then be questioned, with the leave of the chair, by the Committee or by a clinical, legal or specialist adviser.
(7) The parties may then question the witnesses on matters arising out of the Committee’s questions, with the party calling the witness being given the last opportunity to do so (as between the parties).
(8) Where the person concerned is a witness, they—
(a)must first be examined by the person representing them or, if there is no such person, must be questioned by the Committee through the chair;
(b)may then be cross-examined;
(c)may then be re-examined by the person representing them, if any; and
(d)may then be questioned, with the leave of the chair, by the Committee whether or not they are represented.
(9) Any further questioning of witnesses is to be at the discretion of the chair.
(10) Except for expert witnesses and the person concerned, witnesses are not to be allowed to attend the proceedings until after they have completed giving their evidence and been formally released by the chair.