Sandra Dunbar Unanimously Elected As The First President Of The BVA Northern Ireland Branch

Following many months of discussion with members and veterinary associations in Northern Ireland, the BVA Northern Ireland Branch held its inaugural meeting in Belfast on Tuesday 12th February. At the meeting Sandra Dunbar, a veterinary surgeon working in the Department for Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD), was unanimously elected as the first President of the Branch. The full Officer Team is: President - Sandra Dunbar President Elect - Pat Hart Hon Secretary - Jean Wales The creation of BVA NI Branch follows the reinvigoration of BVA Scottish Branch and the creation of BVA Welsh Branch in recent years and will ensure that all sectors of the veterinary profession in Northern Ireland and all individual BVA members resident in the region have a strong voice on BVA policy matters. Every BVA member in Northern Ireland is automatically a member of BVA NI Branch, regardless of their membership of other associations. The Officer Team are part of a larger Branch Council which will be made up of representatives covering different areas of expertise and specialism. The inaugural meeting was addressed by NI Chief Veterinary Officer Bert Houston who welcomed the formation of the Branch. He said: “This seems to me to be a logical progression of the excellent work of the other veterinary associations in establishing VetNI, and will further expand the ability of the profession to make their views known even more effectively to Government, the agri-food industry and the public. “In the recent past the assistance of the BVA has been provided informally in helping the local associations present the veterinary view to our politicians on such issues as docking of dogs’ tails or microchipping. While the profession’s view has not always held sway in the eventual outcomes, it has always been valuable and all the more so when it is able to robustly reflect broad support within the entire profession in the UK.” Upon her election as Branch President, Sandra Dunbar said: “I’m delighted and honoured to lead the BVA Northern Ireland Branch in its first year, with the help and support of an exceptional Officer team and Branch Council, not to mention the BVA secretariat in London. “This new mechanism for all the existing associations and veterinary groups, alongside individual BVA members resident in the region, to channel their views and work more effectively together as a whole, will lead to a much stronger voice for the profession on matters of animal health and welfare. I’m looking forward to seeing how it will develop.” BVA Past President Carl Padgett has responsibility for NI issues amongst the BVA Officer Team. He attended the meeting and said: “The BVA NI Branch has been a long time in the making but it has been vitally important for us to spend time listening to the views of the local associations and our members to make sure that the Branch will be a success. “I am absolutely delighted at the election of Sandra Dunbar as the inaugural president and I very much look forward to working closely with Sandra and the team on important issues such as bovine TB and other endemic disease programmes, pet animal welfare, and research.”

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