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New chairs elected to BVA committees
Bill McKelvey.
Author of 'McKelvey report' to chair vet policy group

THREE of the BVA's standing committees have new chairmen, including the author of the report into governance and overspend at the RCVS.

Bill McKelvey has been elected chair of the Veterinary Policy Group (VPG), of which he has been a member since 2011, as well as serving on BVA council and the advisory panel for BVA Congress.

Madeleine Campbell takes over the helm of the Ethics and Welfare Group (EWG) and Adele Williams will lead the Overseas Group (OG).

Professor McKelvey was a member of the RCVS Governance Review Group and chaired the RCVS Overspend Committee, producing the "McKelvey report" of the group's findings, which was never published in full by the college.

His career has spanned veterinary practice, academia and
business. Until early 2012, Prof McKelvey was CEO and
principal of the Scottish Agricultural College. He is a Fellow of the
Royal Society of Edinburgh and has been awarded an OBE for services to
agriculture. He is vice-chairman of the Agri-Food and
Biosciences Institute in Northern Ireland, a member of the boards of
both the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency and the Scottish Food
Advisory Committee, and a non-executive director of a large livestock
farming business in Scotland.

A former BEVA president, Dr Campbell has been a member of the EWG since 2010. She is the Wellcome Trust clinical research fellow in veterinary ethics at the RVC. She is a European and RCVS recognised specialist in equine reproduction and the sole partner at Hobgoblins Equine Reproduction Centre. Dr Campbell was the first vet to be awarded a Wellcome Trust Fellowship in
biomedical ethics, and is using that funding to research the ethics of assisted reproductive techniques in non-human mammals. She also has a
research interest in the ethics of competitive animal use. Dr Campbell
holds an MA in Medical Ethics and Law, having graduated with
distinction.

New chair of BVA's Overseas Group, Adele Williams, has been a member of the OG since 2010. Ms Williams is a European specialist diplomat in equine internal medicine and teaches undergraduate andn postgraduate veterinary clinical skills as well as conducting research into equine disease. She has submitted her PhD thesis based on biochemistry of equine recurrent airway obstruction at the University of Manchester and next year will be starting as a lecturer in equine medicine at the University of Surrey's new School of Veterinary Medicine.

Ms Williams has been involved in overseas charitable projects in Romania,
Ukraine and The Gambia, participating in veterinary work and education
of vets and local animal handlers to improve health and
welfare.

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Equine Disease Surveillance report released for Q4 2025

News Story 1
 The latest Equine Disease Surveillance report has been released, with details on equine disease from Q4 of 2025.

The report, produced by Equine Infectious Disease Surveillance, includes advice on rule changes for equine influenza vaccination.

Statistics and maps detail recent outbreaks of equine herpes virus, equine influenza, equine strangles and equine grass sickness. A series of laboratory reports provides data on virology, bacteriology, parasitology and toxicosis.

This issue also features a case study of orthoflavivus-associated neurological disease in a horse in the UK. 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
RCVS annual renewal fee for vets due

RCVS' annual renewal fee for veterinary surgeons is now due. Vets must pay their renewal fee before Wednesday, 1 April 2026.

This year's standard annual fee has increased to 431 from last year's 418. This is an approximately three per cent increase, as approved by RCVS Council and the Privy Council.

Tshidi Gardner, RCVS treasurer, said: "The small fee increase will be used to help deliver both our everyday activities and our new ambitious Strategic Plan, which includes aims such as achieving new legislation, reviewing the Codes of Professional Conduct and supporting guidance, and continuing to support the professions through activities such as the Mind Matters Initiative, RCVS Academy and career development."

A full breakdown of the new fees is on the RCVS website. Information about tax relief is available on the UK government website.