The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 277 No 7413 p199
12 August 2006

Society summary

Election scheme approved for national boards

To supplement the proposed regulations for national pharmacy boards (p197), the Council of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society has approved an election scheme designed to be consistent with the regulations (which state that members will be elected to the boards “in accordance with a scheme made by the Council”).

At the August Council meeting, the Council was reminded that the draft regulations state that members would be elected to the boards in accordance with a scheme made by the Council. The election scheme would not be part of the regulations but had to be consistent with them.

Considering a proposed election scheme, the Council noted that the first elections to the new boards are expected to be held in late 2006, with the board members taking up office in January 2007. In future, however, it is proposed to hold board elections concurrently with Council elections. It was therefore agreed that there will be no election in 2007 and that about one-third of each board’s elected members will stand down in each of the following three years (beginning with those elected with the lowest numbers of votes in the first election).

Board members will be able to serve for limited number of three-year terms (four in England and three in Scotland and Wales), after which they will then not be eligible to seek re-election for another three years.

Elections will be on a simple majority basis by ballot of pharmacists with addresses in the country concerned. For the English board, five elected places will be reserved for pharmacists from each of five specific sectors of practice — community, hospital, industry, academia and primary care/public health.

In Scotland and Wales a candidate will be eligible for election only if his or her registered address is in that country. In England, a candidate will be eligible if he or she either lives or works wholly or mainly in England.

In England, a pharmacist candidate will need to be nominated by at least 10 persons qualified to vote in England. In Scotland, the minimum is five persons qualified to vote. Pharmacist candidates is Wales will need only one nomination, as will pharmacy technician candidates in England and Wales.