Voting for the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) Council elections will open this week! RCVS Council is the governing body for the RCVS responsible for deciding on major issues relating to the regulation of the veterinary professions including strategy, professional standards, education, registration, and projects to help advance the professions.
There are 13 candidates standing in this year’s election for RCVS Council, the voting period for which will close at 5pm on Friday 22 April 2022.
The candidates, which include three BEVA members, are as follows:
• Dr Jason Aldiss MRCVS
• Professor David Barrett FRCVS
• Dr Mark Bowen FRCVS
• Dr Abbie Calow MRCVS
• Olivia Cook MRCVS
• Edward Davies MRCVS
• Thomas Gliddon MRCVS
• Dr Ian McKelvie MRCVS
• Dr Susan Paterson FRCVS
• Dr Gonzalo Sanchez-Cabezudo Perez MRCVS
• Radu Sirbu MRCVS
• Dr Huw Stacey MRCVS
• Dr Samantha Webster MRCVS
The full biographies and manifesto statements for each candidate are available to read here. The three candidates who receive the most votes will take up their four-year terms on RCVS Council at the College’s Annual General Meeting on Friday 8 July 2022.
The VN Council election will be taking place over the same timeframe. VN Council has the overall responsibility for all matters concerning veterinary nurse training, post-qualification awards and the registration of qualified veterinary nurses, and the nine candidates who are standing in this year’s election are:
• Samantha Jayne Anderson RVN
• Teri-Ann Baldwin RVN
• Jessica Louise Beckett RVN
• Kirsten Cavill RVN
• Sophie Louise Connolly RVN
• Jane Davidson RVN
• Olivia Jade Dunlop RVN
• Sarah Amanda Scholes RVN
• Holly Witchell RVN
The two candidates with the most votes will join VN Council for their three-year terms at the College’s AGM in July.
As with the 2021 elections, voting this year will take place completely online with Civica Election Services, which runs the elections on behalf of the RCVS, sending emails containing links to a unique voting website to each veterinary surgeon and veterinary nurse eligible to vote in their respective elections.
Once again this year, the RCVS has gained permission from the Privy Council to temporarily amend its Election Scheme to allow voting to take place entirely online. This means that physical ballot papers will not be distributed to veterinary surgeons eligible to vote this year.
The small minority of veterinary surgeons for whom the RCVS do not hold an email address will receive a letter with instructions on how to vote online, in addition to their unique code for the voting website.
Voting is due to open on this week, keep an eye out for an email from Civica Election Services (formerly Electoral Reform Services) to vote with a secure link to a unique voting website. Voters will be able to cast their vote for up to four candidates.