1st Report - A sustainable veterinary workforce

Workforce pressures in the veterinary profession are no longer driven primarily by an overall shortage of qualified individuals, but by challenges in retention, distribution and alignment with specific roles. At our evidence session at Harper Adams University, all four senior veterinary representatives on the panel emphasised that veterinary training produces a highly transferable skillset, supporting careers across industry, research, regulation and policy. While presented as a strength, this sits in clear tension with evidence of ongoing recruitment and retention difficulties in clinical practice, raising questions about how far workforce planning is aligned with the profession’s own account of career mobility. (Conclusion, Paragraph 12)

While recruitment has stabilised and the arrival of new entrants through the pipeline has increased, significant and persistent gaps remain in public sector roles, geographically isolated practices and other “deficit areas”. High attrition rates and a “constant churn” in some areas are leading to a loss of expertise and impose ongoing costs on employers. This is not an issue that can be resolved by any single organisation, but one that requires a collective response across the whole sector. To be sustainable, the profession will need to adapt to the expectations of a more modern workforce, including evolving needs and preferences around working conditions, flexibility and career development. (Conclusion, Paragraph 13)

Defra should, within six months, commission a sector-wide review, working in partnership with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, veterinary schools, and other major employers and representative bodies, including the British Veterinary Association, to build a robust evidence base on the drivers of retention challenges across the profession. This review should: • establish a consistent, data driven understanding of attrition across different sectors, career stages and geographies; • identify the key factors influencing retention, particularly in shortage areas such as public sector roles and rural practice; 23 • set out targeted, evidence-based interventions to improve retention in these sectors such as incentives, support packages, and career pathways; and • include clear metrics and baseline data for monitoring workforce distribution and attrition rates annually, alongside measurable targets for improvement. (Recommendation, Paragraph 14)

The veterinary profession remains reliant on international recruitment to fill critical roles, particularly in public health and official veterinary services. While international vets have made a vital contribution, this “learned dependency” has masked underlying weaknesses in domestic workforce planning and training pipelines. Recent changes to visa thresholds and the phasing out of the mutual recognition for EU veterinary qualifications arrangements risk exacerbating these pressures. (Conclusion, Paragraph 15)

The Home Office, in collaboration with Defra, should review the Skilled Worker Visa salary thresholds for veterinary roles by early 2027 to ensure they: • reflect realistic earlycareer salary progression in the sector; • do not create barriers to recruiting overseas vets into shortage roles; and • are aligned with wider workforce needs in public health and food safety. This review should include consultation with the RCVS, BVA, and major veterinary employers, and publish its findings. (Recommendation, Paragraph 16) Veterinary training and access to the profession

Veterinary education in the UK is of critical national importance, underpinning animal health and welfare, public health, food safety and biosecurity. UK veterinary schools are internationally revered and play a vital role in delivering a highly skilled workforce. Despite this, the current funding model is not sustainable; the high cost of delivering veterinary training is not matched by available funding. This imbalance has placed veterinary education in a precarious position at a time when wider pressures on the higher education sector are acute. We are concerned that, without intervention, there is a real risk of course contraction or closures, which could have significant societal impacts, including for public health, animal welfare and food security. (Conclusion, Paragraph 25) 24

The government should, within the next Spending Review, undertake a full review of funding for veterinary education and take the recommended steps to ensure that funding levels reflect the true cost of training. This review, jointly undertaken by Defra and the Department for Education should: • assess the gap between costs and funding for domestic students; • set out options to close this gap, including increased teaching grants for high-cost courses; and • ensure the long-term financial sustainability of veterinary schools, recognising their strategic importance to the UK. (Recommendation, Paragraph 26)

While high academic standards in veterinary school admissions are justified, we are concerned that current entry routes may unintentionally exclude applicants who would excel in the profession. It takes more than academic excellence at 18 to be a good vet, and the profession is strengthened by a diversity of skills, experiences and perspectives. Barriers such as limited access to required subjects at school or a lack of opportunities for relevant work experience do not reflect a lack of ability. International examples, particularly from Australia and the United States, show that widening participation can not only improve diversity, but also support better retention outcomes. (Conclusion, Paragraph 27)

Defra and the RCVS should, within 18 months, begin work with veterinary schools to develop and implement sector wide guidance on contextual and flexible admissions. This should: • support consistent use of contextual offers and alternative access routes; • encourage recruitment from rural and underserved areas; and • include annual monitoring of student intake by background and geography, with results published by the RCVS. (Recommendation, Paragraph 28)

Accreditation for veterinary schools must be adaptable to match the realities of a modern veterinary profession, allowing greater flexibility in training while maintaining high standards, so that graduates are better prepared for the evolving demands of practice. (Conclusion, Paragraph 29)

In bringing forward reforms to the 1966 Veterinary Surgeons Act, the government should ensure that it sets out how accreditation requirements can be made more flexible and adaptable, allowing greater freedom in curriculum design. (Recommendation, Paragraph 30) 25 CMA reforms to veterinary services for household pets

Rising prices for veterinary services cannot be explained solely by increased operating costs or higher expectations for standards of care. We agree with the CMA that market consolidation has been a major contributing factor to price increases and welcome its investigation and the overall direction of its proposed remedies. We are concerned, however, about the potential unintended consequences of the remedial proposals. In rural and isolated areas, limited provision means that market competition is often not the primary concern. There is a risk that additional regulatory burdens may lead to increased costs rather than improved competition. The proposals may also require independent and mixed practices to adapt or fundamentally change their business models, particularly where small animal services currently support the viability of other services. Care must therefore be taken to ensure that reforms do not inadvertently weaken overall service provision or access to care, particularly in geographically isolated areas as animal welfare must remain paramount. (Conclusion, Paragraph 37)

The government should ensure the CMA’s remedies are fully rural proofed. The government should instruct the CMA, in partnership with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, to establish a monitoring framework by September 2027 to coincide with the deadline for small practices to implement most of the remedies. This framework should monitor prices, competition, business sustainability and access to services in rural and isolated areas. The CMA should publish a formal review of the impact of its remedies by March 2029, giving small business 18 months to adapt to the new requirements. The review should assess impacts on mixed practices, rural provision, and market outcomes. Where adverse effects are identified, the CMA should implement corrective measures within a further six months to protect service provision and animal welfare. (Recommendation, Paragraph 38) Reform of the Veterinary Surgeons Act

Reform of the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966 (VSA) presents an important opportunity to modernise regulation, support a more flexible workforce, and strengthen public confidence. Reform is clearly needed, but it must be carefully designed, with clear definitions of roles and responsibilities and sufficient flexibility to remain fit for purpose as the profession evolves. We therefore welcome Defra’s commitment to engage the sector and consult on priorities for a new VSA. While reform is long overdue and the Act is nearly 60 years old, it is better to take an additional 18 months to two years to 26 deliver a phased, wellplanned approach. The CMA remedies are seen by the government as a “stopgap” ahead of wider VSA reform, but this could risk undermining the longterm legislative change required and pre-empting or complicating more comprehensive reform. (Conclusion, Paragraph 43)

The development of Competition and Market Authority’s (CMA) remedies and Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966 (VSA) reform should be coordinated to ensure alignment, avoid duplication, and minimise unintended consequences. In response to this report, Defra should provide a clear explanation of how the CMA’s interim remedies will interact with longer-term legislative reform. Defra should explain how the reformed VSA will deliver a flexible, future- proof framework that supports workforce development and protects animal welfare. (Recommendation, Paragraph 44)

Defra should set out a clear delivery plan for VSA reform in response to this report, including estimated staff requirements, programme costs, key milestones, and an indicative legislative timetable through to implementation. This plan should also identify how engagement with the sector will be resourced and sustained throughout the reform process. (Recommendation, Paragraph 45)

In professions such as medicine and law, regulatory functions have been separated from professional bodies, with oversight vested in independent regulators. Self-regulation is increasingly unsuitable for a profession where vet practices and services are coming under the ownership of corporate entities and the management of non-vets. Reform of the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966 provides an opportunity to implement an independent regulatory model, while we recognise that such a change would involve tradeoffs and require careful assessment of its costs and impacts. (Conclusion, Paragraph 49)

As part of reform of the Veterinary Surgeons Act, the government should separate the RCVS’s professional leadership role from any regulatory functions within the veterinary profession, creating a new independent body that can oversee the expanded role of a reformed Act. It should draw on models used in other regulated professions to achieve this, taking account of the specific requirements of the veterinary profession. (Recommendation, Paragraph 50) 27