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North down vet named junior vice president of BVA

Simon Doherty has been appointed to the position of junior vice president at the British Veterinary Association
Simon Doherty has been appointed to the position of junior vice president at the British Veterinary Association Simon Doherty has been appointed to the position of junior vice president at the British Veterinary Association

A north Down veterinary consultant has been named junior vice president of the prestigious British Veterinary Association.

Simon Doherty, director of Blackwater Consultancy and animal science and aquaculture specialist to the UK Government Department for International Trade (DIT) was appointed to the role for the next year at the BVA annual members' day held in Belfast.

Mr Doherty, who has worked in both Northern Ireland and Scotland, was instrumental in setting up Veterinary Northern Ireland (VetNI) as a ‘one-stop shop’ for the local veterinary associations in Northern Ireland. In 2007 he was appointed as a veterinary research officer at the Veterinary Sciences Division of the Agri-Food & Biosciences Institute (AFBI) in Stormont, Belfast

He returned to the private sector in 2014, and in 2015 he registered Blackwater Consultancy, which works with companies to drive inward investment and support export trade in the animal health and aquaculture sector on behalf of DIT.

Speaking about his appointment to the UK’s largest representative body for vets Mr Doherty said it was a"tremendous honour".

“We have entered an era of significant political and economic change that is already presenting challenges to the veterinary professions and animal health industry. It is a tremendous honour to take on the role of junior vice president of BVA just now; representing the interests of veterinary surgeons engaged in diverse careers throughout the United Kingdom, who make essential contributions to animal health and welfare, and the protection of public health.”