The Professional Standards Authority (PSA) has confirmed that it is reviewing a decision of the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) concerning Dr Ghassan Abu-Sitta.
UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) has made a detailed submission to the PSA raising serious concerns about the decision and has asked the PSA to consider referring it to the High Court under section 29 of the National Health Service Reform and Health Care Professions Act 2002.
UKLFI contends that extensive evidence was not properly presented or pursued by the General Medical Council (GMC). UKLFI had provided the GMC with detailed material, including numerous social media posts, public speeches, and published writings. The majority of this evidence was not put before the tribunal.
UKLFI also highlights what it describes as serious procedural and evidential failures by the GMC, including the omission of stronger allegations, failure to establish key facts such as dates of posts (even though evidence was provided to the GMC), and a lack of engagement with the complainant during case preparation. As a result, the Tribunal did not consider the full pattern of conduct alleged.
Section 29 of the National Health Service Reform and Health Care Professions Act 2002 gives the Professional Standards Authority (PSA) a statutory power to challenge decisions made by healthcare professional regulators and their tribunals, including the MPTS.
The power exists to protect the public where a regulator or tribunal decision is considered insufficient to achieve one or more of the following statutory objectives:
- Protect the health, safety and wellbeing of the public
- Maintain public confidence in the profession
- Maintain proper professional standards and conduct
This power was previously used when the pharmacist, Nazim Ali, was acquitted by a Tribunal of antisemitism. The High Court ordered a reconsideration of the decision, and the Tribunal subsequently upheld two of the charges.
UKLFI has now urged the PSA to exercise its power to refer the Ghassan Abu-Sitta case to the High Court. The PSA has informed UKLFI that it reviews all final fitness to practise decisions made by the MPTS on behalf of the GMC and is currently reviewing the outcome of Dr Abu Sitta’s case. The PSA has confirmed that UKLFI’s concerns will be carefully considered and that It has until 5 March 2026 to review the decision.
A UKLFI spokesperson said: “In our view this case represents a serious failure to uphold standards which many members of the public expect of the medical profession. When extensive evidence is not properly investigated, public confidence is inevitably undermined.”