Opening

The Chair opened the meeting at 1335 hours and welcomed everyone present.

The meeting had been preceded by the Breed Council's DNA seminar resulting in non-member clubs taking the opportunity to visit the Council meeting. The Chair welcomed the guests. He highlighted that the current Council constitution did not contain a previous rule permitting guests and the restrictions on their attendance. This had been an omission rather than a deletion. As such the Chair was content that the spirit of the rule should be continued until the matter could be addressed. He would cover this in the Constitution agenda item.

The member clubs present were:
Northern Ireland, Scotland, South Western, North Western, Lancastrian, Midland, South Eastern, Wales and East Anglian.

Apologies had been submitted for:
David Hudson (Secretary), Ray Wilkinson (Ass. Secretary), Ruth Wilkinson, Val Zaza, Ronnie Burns, Heather Pennie and James Macdonald.

The guest clubs present were:
Greater London, North Eastern and The Old English Sheepdog Club.

In the absence of both the Secretary and Ass. Secretary the Chair requested the patience and cooperation of all present.

Minutes
The draft minutes of the General Meeting held on 24 April 2005 had been circulated. Corrections:
Page 2 - North Eastern should read North Western.
Page 5 - The Chair confirmed the £300 donation to the Health Fund had been proposed by the Treasurer. The Chair had asked for any dissenting voices. None were made and the proposal was carried.
The minutes would be corrected accordingly and re-circulated.
Proposed as an accurate record by Wales and seconded by South Western.

Matters Arising
No matters arising.

Correspondence
The Chair confirmed that the Secretary had distributed all correspondence to member club Secretary's.
Yearling classes. There was a discussion regarding the benefits of having a Special Yearling class, particularly at Crufts.

Judging List
A3 Criteria
The current criteria was in circulation. This was a standing item to permit an annual review of the criteria. All members were content for it to remain as is.

The East Anglian enquired if any other item had been entered onto the agenda under judging list. The Chair allowed them to explain.

There was a feeling among the EA committee that anyone wishing to judge should have an equal chance to do so, more so with General Champ shows as there was not enough variation. This is affecting both up and coming judges and show entries. There was suspicion that General Champ shows were selecting judges capable of judging more than one breed in an effort to cut costs.

The Midland club enquired if the Breed Council can confirm who its list had been distributed to. The Chair would enquire with the Secretary on this matter.

The Welsh club gave an insight on how different Secretaries selected judges highlighting different approaches.

From the discussion that followed the Chair took actions to enquire with the Secretary if there was a check made by the Kennel Club that a proposed judge was on the Breed Council lists and if the list distributed by the Council had an accompanying letter.

The Welsh club added that whatever action was taken now Secretaries are presently selecting judges for 2008.

The EA suggested that exhibitors should challenge incompetent judging. The resultant discussion agreed with the principle albeit 'incompetence' is subjective. Regardless, any individual wishing to challenge judging should do so in writing to the hosting club for onward attention of the Breed Council.

Constitution
The Chair reiterated the erroneous omission from the previous constitution the rule regarding visiting clubs. The Chair would reinsert the rule and circulate the new constitution via the Secretary. Subject to its approval the revised constitution would be submitted to the Kennel Club for tacit approval pending its adoption at the Council's AGM.

Breed Liaison
Ray Owen provided an update advising that the Liaison Council minutes are now distributed to breed clubs by the Kennel Club.

Their were two issues of note, namely the Accredited Breeders Scheme and the Judges Development Project.

The Kennel Club are working with clubs to make the ABS screening requirements breed specific. As such they were seeking responses by the end of October 2005 (late submissions permitted) to become affective by December 2005. The question asked of the Breed Council is what should it return in respect of Old English. Presently the Scheme requires BVA and Eyes but has no recommendations. The East Anglian and Wales had both made returns which included DNA 'profile', grooming advice, general support and rehoming support.

The Chair confirmed that all clubs had seen this letter although not all had had the opportunity to meet to discuss their response. He requested that all clubs copy their responses to the Secretary to collate a Council response to the Kennel Club.

The Irish club has concerns regarding first time breeders being accredited prior to having bred. The Chair expressed opinion that accreditation should be achieved and not assumed. An applicant should undertake to comply with the Scheme and then demonstrate conformation of their first few litters. The meeting showed general support of this and the Chair requested each club to consider its inclusion in their respective responses.

The Secretary should advise the Kennel Club of its late meeting and intended submission.

The JDP would be informing the Council and Clubs when candidates move up the list. The Council had submitted a letter to the JDP regarding its best practice document.

Health
The Chair introduced this item by referring to the earlier seminar. He had found it highly informative and stimulating. It also highlighted the need for the breed to progress research in a united way taking all individual concerns on board, e.g. Legal issues. As such the presence of all Breed clubs provided a unique opportunity to discuss and progress this work.

North Western suggested there could be merit in the Kennel Club using its resources to progress issues common to all research. The Chair agreed and referred to the legal issues where generic contracts and agreements could be achieved.
There was a suggestion that Dr Sampson's presentation would be useful on the Council's website.
It was also suggested that the Kennel Club should be asked for a list of breeds involved in research. We could engage with them to learn lessons. This consultation would have to be cautious of acting on all advise, e.g. Non registration.
It was highlighted that Dr Sampson had stressed the need to build up blood samples.

The East Anglian enquired regarding individuals who had been written to by the Kennel Club to provide 3 swabs. It was confirmed this was for a survey on breeds to profile their genetic origins.

The East Anglian then proposed that the meeting decide what area should be researched. The Chair advised that the timing of the Seminar had hoped to align with the publication of the Kennel Club breed health survey so as to better inform this decision. The general feeling of the meeting was to make progress and to make a decision.

The Chair advised all clubs that they should represent the view agreed by their committee and, where a view had not been established, clubs should defer their decision.

The North Eastern sought clarification on what rules this vote was being made since non-members were not entitled to vote on Breed Council matters. The Chair reiterated that this was a unique coming together of all clubs and on an important issue. Consequently it was his intention to set this time apart from the meeting. As such the meeting would be facilitating a meeting and decision on behalf of all breed clubs, not a single Breed Council vote. The Breed Council acting on behalf of all clubs would carry this decision forward. This explanation and intention was accepted.

The Chair asked each club in turn to declare their preferred area of research or to state if they were deferring. The results were as follows:
Northern Ireland - eyes
Scotland - eyes
Greater London - defer
South Western - defer
North Western - eyes
Lancastrian - eyes
Midland - eyes
South Eastern - defer
Wales - defer
North Eastern - eyes
East Anglian - eyes
OES - defer

5 Clubs deferred and 7 stated eyes. The Breed Council would submit an application to the Health Trust in time for the 29 October deadline.

The Greater London addressed the Chair and requested that the Breed Council consider adopting the established OES Health Fund so that it became and operated under the auspices and auditing of the Council. The Treasurer confirmed she was willing to take on the financial commitment. The Chair then asked if any members dissented. No objections were made and the proposal was accepted. The Chair thanked the persons behind the health fund for the work to date and for a pragmatic proposal.

The North Eastern suggested the Council prepare and circulate a letter for all clubs regarding all clubs supporting the foregoing decisions. This was accepted and a copy of the letter would be sent to all Secretaries.

AOCB
The Chair raised two items set aside for AOCB, namely the JDP and Pets at Dog Shows.

The Secretary had advised that only 3 names had been submitted for the list of persons willing to deliver at seminars. The Midland had written to the Council expressing their opinion that any person willing to issue CCs should be able to do this. Wales acknowledged the principle but highlighted that not all people are good public speakers or presenters.

The Chair then invited the Midland club to talk on the pets at dog shows. The club had submitted a letter to the Kennel Club regarding the proposed Spectator Dog Entry scheme. This letter of objection was read out and was met with general approval. Some clubs had also established that their show insurance would not cover them. In order to prepare a Council response the Chair requested that all clubs responding to the proposal should copy their letters to the Secretary.

Date of next meeting

1200 on 23 April 2006 at Walton Inn, Stone

AGM followed by the General meeting.

The Chair thanked everyone for their attendance and contribution. He expressed his thanks to all guests and hoped they were pleased with the business discussed at the meeting and the community spirit in which it was conducted. The Council took pride in its open and transparent approach and reminded the guests that they were welcome to re-attend with a view to deciding whether to join the Council.
The meeting was closed at 1515.

THE NEXT MEETING IS NOW SCHEDULED FOR THE 2nd OF APRIL SO AS NOT TO CLASH WITH THE LANCASTRIAN CLUB SHOW.

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