The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 273 No 7315 p312-315
4 September 2004

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· The Charter
· Charter ballot
· Volunteer agencies
· Voting
· Personal control
· Medicines and devices
· Simvastatin
· Ward technicians
· CAM
· Remuneration
· The Profession
· Education
· CRCS
· Retention fee
· Onlooker

Letters to the Editor

Voting

Astonished that some Council members voted to return to STV

From Mr G. A. Miller, MRPharmS

Before the Council election in 2003, the voting system used to elect the Council was the single transferable vote (STV). For many years before 2003 branch representatives requested year after year to change the voting system from STV to first past the post (FPTP). Members views were finally listened to and acted upon, when the voting system was changed from STV to FPTP for the 2003 elections, and through personal discussions with many members, it appears to me they were happy with this change.

I had the privilege of attending the August 2004 Council meeting as a branch observer and was impressed with the breadth and depth of the discussions that were carried out over the two days. When I initially received the agenda and accompanying papers for the Council meeting, about an hour before the start, I was a little surprised to find that there would be a discussion on the election system, considering the relatively short period of time that the FPTP system had been used.
During the discussion, I was utterly astonished that there were members of Council who appeared to be happy with ignoring the clearly expressed wishes of the membership, by voting for a change back from FPTP to the STV system, without even consulting the members about this change.

The Council voted by a clear majority to continue with the FPTP system. Council members that voted to change back to the STV system would do well to remember the warning in the leading article after this years Council election (PJ, 22 May, p628), that Council members ignore the views of the membership at their peril.

Gavin Miller
London SE1

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