RCVS Council and VN Council elections open

Voting in both the RCVS Council and RCVS Veterinary Nurses Council elections opens on Friday 13 March 2009.

RCVS Council is made up of 40 members: four are appointed by the Privy Council, 12 by the veterinary schools and 24 by direct election. Each member is appointed for a four-year term of office. Every year, six members of Council retire at the Annual General Meeting, though they are eligible for re-election.

This year, nine candidates are standing for six places on RCVS Council, including five veterinary surgeons who currently sit on Council, one former Council member and three new faces.

The candidates are:

1. Dr Jerry Davies
2. Mr Chris Gray
3. Mr Peter Jinman
4. Mr Thomas Lonsdale
5. Mr David McDowell
6. Mrs Jill Nute
7. Mr Nigel Swayne
8. Mr Chris Tufnell
9. Dr Bradley Viner

RCVS VN Council is made up of 17 members: eight elected veterinary nurses, six veterinary surgeon members (including three from RCVS Council), one Lantra representative and two lay members. VN members are also appointed for a four-year term of office. Two members retire each year and this year one existing Council member has decided to stand again and three new candidates are up for election.

The candidates are:

1. Mrs Louise Glysen
2. Miss Cheryl Ives
3. Mrs Andrea Jeffery
4. Mrs Caroline Williams

Manifesto and biography information will be available on RCVSonline shortly for RCVS Council 2009 and RCVS VN Council 2009.

In addition, special election areas will be hosted on http://www.vetsurgeon.org/ and www.vetnurse.co.uk/. Here, voters can question the candidates directly, to help inform their voting choices.

Votes can be made in three ways, by phone, by post or online. All those eligible will receive ballot papers containing full details of how to vote, and votes must be received by 5pm on Friday 1 May 2009.

“Sixty per cent of RCVS Council members and nearly half of VN Council members are elected – so those votes do count,” says Jane Hern, RCVS Registrar.

“The RCVS is not a representative organisation and Council members do not represent their electorate in the way that an MP represents a constituency. But it is important that those regulating the profession have its support and backing so I would urge everyone to use his or her vote.”

Both elections are run by independent organisation Electoral Reform Services, which services elections for organisations in the UK and worldwide.

Newly-elected Council members will take their seats at RCVS Day, the College’s AGM and awards ceremony, on Friday 3 July 2009.