Dr Gwenllian Mair Rees has become President of the British Veterinary Association (BVA) for 2026–2027, placing national animal disease resilience and veterinary preparedness at the centre of her presidential agenda.
A Welsh farm veterinarian and academic, Dr Rees was formally installed at BVA Day on 24 September 2026. Her presidential theme is “A profession prepared and united behind national disease resilience.”
A Broader Veterinary Preparedness Model
Dr Rees has highlighted the increasing specialisation of veterinary medicine while arguing that major animal-disease emergencies frequently cross conventional professional boundaries. Her focus is therefore on strengthening the ability of veterinarians across:
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Farm animal practice
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Companion-animal practice
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Equine medicine
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Government veterinary services
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Public health
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Academia and research
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Industry
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Wildlife and conservation
to contribute to a coordinated response during major disease emergencies.
The BVA president has specifically raised questions around whether the profession has sufficient skills, training and mobilisation capacity to respond rapidly to a major notifiable disease outbreak.
Disease Threat Context
The emphasis comes against a continuing backdrop of transboundary animal-disease risks affecting the UK and Europe, including diseases such as avian influenza, foot-and-mouth disease and bluetongue.
The BVA has separately highlighted recent changes to bluetongue testing and reporting in England intended to reduce diagnostic waiting times.
The new presidential agenda therefore places disease preparedness within a wider veterinary-system framework rather than treating it solely as a government emergency-response function.
Wider Regulatory Agenda
Dr Rees will also lead the BVA during implementation of reforms arising from the Competition and Markets Authority’s review of veterinary services, while the association continues its campaign for reform of the Veterinary Surgeons Act.
Her background includes farm and equine practice, population medicine and antimicrobial stewardship. She is also a founding academic at Aberystwyth University’s School of Veterinary Science and leads the Veterinary Prescribing Champions Network, a Welsh Government-funded antimicrobial-stewardship programme.
Strategic / Analyst View
The significance for the animal-health industry is the growing emphasis on veterinary workforce readiness as a component of biosecurity. Disease preparedness requires more than vaccines, diagnostics and surveillance. It also requires sufficient veterinary capacity to:
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Recognise disease rapidly.
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Collect and interpret diagnostic samples.
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Implement movement and biosecurity measures.
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Communicate effectively with farmers and animal owners.
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Support vaccination and treatment programmes.
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Mobilise expertise rapidly during outbreaks.
