The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 270 No 7248 p663
10 May 2003

Society summary

Arrangements finalised for special general meeting on modernisation and Charter proposals

The special general meeting of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society called to debate issues relating to the Society's constitution and ways of working will take place in central London on Sunday 1 June at 2pm.

The venue for the meeting, which has been called by a group of members that includes ex-Council members, past-presidents and candidates in this year's Council election (PJ, 12 April, p525), will take place in the Churchill Auditorium, Queen Elizabeth II Centre, Broad Sanctuary, Westminster, London SW1. (Members wishing to attend should take care not to confuse this venue with the Queen Elizabeth Hall, which is part of the South Bank complex on the opposite side of the River Thames.)

At the meeting, members will debate:

• The Society's proposals for changes to the composition of the Council

• The future remit of the Society and how it will perform its duty to maintain the honour and safeguard and promote the interests of the members in their exercise of the profession of pharmacy

• The Society's proposals to seek charitable status, the potential effect of this on the Society and its impact on the membership

• Whether the assets and funds of the Society should be applied to a body constituted to perform regulatory functions under the provision of the Health Act 1999

Members will also be asked to vote on the motion:

• This meeting rejects any increase in the proportion of non-pharmacist members of the Council of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society as such an increase would undermine the Council's ability to maintain the honour and safeguard and promote the interests of the members in their exercise of the profession of pharmacy

Following that, members will vote on the motion:

• This meeting instructs the Council to arrange for a referendum of the entire membership to be held to establish the level of support for any proposed new Charter once the details of any such proposal(s) have been finalised

Members will also be asked to vote on any other motions that may arise on the day.

Official Notice, p668