THE Education Commission yesterday promised to discuss the need for an independent, statutory teachers' association for the monitoring of professional conduct if there was a formal request.

Chairman Professor Rosie Young Tse-tse was responding to calls from members of the advisory Council on Professional Conduct in Education.

The council said it could not do its job because the department, fearing it might breach privacy laws, would not hand over personal information about individual cases of alleged misconduct.

The 28 members have passed a declaration which states that they would hasten the preparation of a statutory teachers' association.