It’s not every day that we have an opportunity to invite an MP to our offices, so it was our absolute pleasure that Alec Shelbrooke MP accepted our invitation to visit our HQ in September.

A member of the Conservative Party, Mr Shelbrooke (Alec) has represented Elmett and Rothwell, Leeds since 2010.  Understandably passionate about supporting local businesses, we had the privilege of showing Alec around our offices. He was able to meet members of our team, including our new international veterinary recruits and spend some time with Charles Hartwell our CEO.

Rather than a conventional sit-down interview, we were able to conversationally discuss many of the pressing challenges our industry currently faces. Most valuably, the meeting provided Charles the opportunity to discuss the important work we do at Eville & Jones to protect animal welfare, public health, and enable international trade.  They also had a very productive discussion around the current shortage of veterinarians within the UK, and the levers that could be pulled to alleviate the situation.

Alec met with some of our latest international vet recruits – all of whom are joining Eville & Jones as Meat Hygiene Inspectors, as under the current legislation they are unable to register with the RCVS and are therefore unable to work as Vets in the UK.

To quote Charles’ LinkedIn post

“Great to welcome our local MP Alec Shelbrooke MP to Eville & Jones HQ today and for him to spend time with our veterinarians and MHIs discussing the critical role vets play in animal welfare, food safety, and international trade.

I also had the opportunity to discuss solutions to the current national shortage of vets, and how vets can be a huge asset to the UK in the post Brexit landscape.

Thank you for your support!”

We’d like to thank Alec Shelbrooke again for his time with us and we’ll continue to raise awareness to this situation with Parliament, hopeful that the guidance can be realigned with the current needs facing the meat hygiene industry.