The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) is set to freeze fees for a second year, despite estimating a £4 million increase in its costs.

The regulator proposed dipping into its reserves rather than increasing the cost of registration in papers released ahead of its council meeting on Thursday (February 6).

The meeting will see the council confirm whether to keep fees at present levels, which have not changed since the 10 per cent reduction in 2012. Pharmacists currently pay £240 to renew their registration, technicians pay £108 and the fee for registered pharmacies is £221.

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	The GPhC said its expenditure was due to rise by a fifth in 2014-15 to exceed about £24m. This would be fuelled by the cost of moving its premises to Canary Wharf, which will include paying out rents at both Lambeth and the new premises for "a certain time" and total relocation payouts of up to £302,000, it forecast.

The regulator is also due to recruit more staff, taking its total recruitment costs to an estimated £200,000. Fully implementing the new premises inspections, investing in IT and cutting the time taken to deal with fitness-to-practise cases would incur further costs, it said.

But the GPhC said it could achieve its goals without an increase in fees because of its £16m reserve funds. "The council can be confident that the necessary resources will be available for it to be able to discharge its regulatory responsibilities," it forecast.