155Appointment

155 Appointment

(1)  The Governor, on the recommendation of the Minister, may appoint a Principal Official Visitor.

(2)  The Principal Official Visitor may appoint one or more Official Visitors.

(3)  A person cannot be appointed under subsection (1) or (2) if he or she –

(a) holds another appointment of any kind under this Act; or

(b) holds an approval of any kind under this Act; or

(c) has, either directly or indirectly, an interest in any contract with the State or Commonwealth Crown related in any way to an approved facility or the provision of mental health services, which interest may prevent, or could reasonably be perceived as likely to prevent, the person from acting impartially as an Official Visitor; or

(d) is, either directly or indirectly, a party to a contract with an approved facility or its controlling authority; or

(e) has, either directly or indirectly, a financial interest in an approved facility; or

(f) has, either directly or indirectly, an interest in the land on which an approved facility, or premises from which a person is provided with services under this Act, is built; or

(g) [Section 155 Subsection (3) amended by No. 4 of 2023, s. 144, Applied:25 Sep 2023] is a State Service officer, or State Service employee or other person, employed in the responsible Department in relation to the Health Act 1997 or, if another Act is prescribed for the purposes of this paragraph, that other Act.

(4)  Schedule 5 has effect in respect of Official Visitors.