Vets must maintain trust in a changing and cynical world is the message from outgoing British Veterinary Association (BVA) President, Robin Hargreaves.

In his final Presidential speech in Manchester, Mr Hargreaves pointed to the tradition of integrity and professionalism that vets enjoy, saying that: “Trust exists in every individual vet/client relationship, in the relationship between BVA and our members, and between the veterinary profession and policymakers.”

Mr Hargreaves emphasised the need to build on this trust to defend and champion the veterinary profession, particularly in relation to the challenges and opportunities he then went on to outline. On the future of the veterinary profession, Mr Hargreaves said: “As new veterinary schools open and the existing schools increase their intake our members are understandably concerned about the impact in terms of underemployment, salary suppression, and the availability of adequate teaching staff and high quality EMS.

“Of course market forces will dictate the future in terms of pure numbers, but it’s our job to think about the consequences, to inform decision makers, and to make sure the next generation of aspiring students understands the changing veterinary landscape. “Managing the expectations of young people making the transition from school to university to practice becomes increasingly important when you consider the enormous pressure that young vets are put under.”

On non-stun slaughter, Mr Hargreaves said: “We were overwhelmed by the positive response from the veterinary profession, but also from members of the public who thanked us for shining a spotlight on such a significant animal welfare issue.

“Our government e-petition attracted 70,000 signatures in just two months revealing the strength of feeling amongst the public not just in favour of better animal welfare standards, but also in support of clearer information about the food they buy.

“And we have been at pains to stress that this is an issue of animal welfare.

“There are those who have attempted to hijack our campaign for their own ends. There are those who refuse to accept our scientifically sound assertion that slaughter without stunning compromises animal welfare. But we have responded to those challenges, engaged with people on both sides of the argument, and we will continue to keep up the pressure.

“We still have some way to go to reach our target of 100,000 signatures and so I implore each of you to promote the petition to your friends, family and colleagues. To share it on social media and to carry on informing people about why it is so important to stun animals before slaughter.”

On bovine TB, Mr Hargreaves said: “It will come as no surprise that one of the biggest challenges I have faced this year is in managing our response to the pilot badger culls in England.

“It remains a hugely emotive and difficult issue and we acknowledge that there are strong differences of opinion within our membership. It has not been an easy process and I am proud that we have managed to maintain a fragile consensus through our Council for our science- and evidence-led position. That is thanks in large part to the willingness of our divisions and our members from different ends of the spectrum of views to come together to analyse and debate the issues.

“I am also proud of the fact that despite enormous public and media pressure, we didn’t take a populist line. We considered the evidence in great detail, debated it from all angles through our committees and Council, and took a view on how we can deliver the greatest benefits in terms of disease control and eradication. On so many animal welfare issues politicians are in danger of taking the view that if it’s not popular it’s got to be wrong. But that would be to miss the detail, the nuance, and the scientific rigour that should be applied to animal health and welfare policy.”