New legislation and an enhanced VN profession
Three veterinary nurses in a clinical setting discussing a case
Once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reform veterinary legislation
In the 13 February 2026 edition of the Veterinary Record, we wrote an article detailing the work that has been undertaken over the previous 12 months with Defra and other stakeholders. In the article we explain our position on the future governance structures for the College and what the likely next steps are for the process.
- Date Published:
Consultations
The article was published to coincide with Defra's consultation on proposed reforms to the Veterinary Surgeons Act, which also asks for views on two potential future governance models for veterinary regulation.
As the article makes clear - the RCVS has a strong preference for continuing the 'royal college that regulates' model, whereby we can undertake supportive and proactive regulatory work - sometimes called 'upstream regulation' - such as the RCVS Academy and our Mind Matters Initiative.
The article is free to read in full via the Vet Record website.
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