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<p>The Government is working with the veterinary profession, including the Royal College
of Veterinary Surgeons, to help ensure that there will be an adequate number of vets
across all sectors of the veterinary profession.</p><p> </p><p>Defra, alongside the
Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons and the British Veterinary Association, was successful
in campaigning for the addition of the veterinary profession to the Shortage Occupation
List by the Home Office in September 2019. This enabled employers to recruit overseas
veterinary surgeons more easily. The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons continues
to accept the vast majority of European veterinary degrees as well as maintaining
mutual recognition agreements with many English-speaking countries that allow automatic
registration for overseas vets.</p><p> </p><p>Defra is also strongly considering proposals
from the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons to increase the range of activities
that can be delegated to allied professionals who work with animals to ease the pressure
on the workload of the practising vet.</p><p> </p><p>We are also looking forward to
an increase in UK-trained vets thanks to several new veterinary schools opening across
the UK. These include Surrey University, which saw its first cohort graduate in 2019,
Harper Adams and Keele University, the University of Central Lancashire, Scottish
Rural College and a collaboration between Aberystwyth University and the Royal Veterinary
College. The increase in veterinary schools will lead to an increase in UK-trained
vets graduating in the longer term.</p>
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