New BVA Northern Ireland President elected amid ongoing concerns over supply of vet medicines

Following his election as Junior Vice President in 2025, he was officially elected President at the BVA NI Branch Annual General Meeting, which took place last night (Thursday 29 January 2026) at the Veterinary Surgeons Supply Company. He succeeds Dr Kirsten Dunbar, who now moves into the role of Senior Vice President for the coming year. 

Dr Strain, whose Presidential theme is ‘Healthy Animals, Healthy People, Healthy Environment’, said: “With the grace period on access to veterinary medicines ending in December, there remains significant concern around the availability of medicines within NI, particularly as stocks carried over from the previous year run down. Over the next few months, we’ll monitor medicine availability and how the new schemes put in place by the UK Government are working and respond quickly should issues arise.  

“Reform of veterinary legislation will also be at the top of the list of priorities, especially following the launch of the public consultation by the UK Government seeking views on its proposals for reform of the current Veterinary Surgeons Act. This is of the utmost importance and will have a significant impact on our professional lives, the care we are able to provide animals and services we provide to our clients. I encourage veterinary professionals to consider the proposals and add their voices to the call for modern, fit-for-purpose legislation.” 

He added: “The health of animals under our care is inextricably linked to the health and wellbeing of people and of our shared environment. During my presidency I want to improve our understanding of this three-way interaction. We need to ask ourselves - what current and emerging approaches can be used in horizon scanning and improving our understanding of current and future disease threats? In what ways can the veterinary profession, in its range of capacities, develop new tools and interventions to protect the wellbeing of people? How can animal health measures contribute to environmental improvement and meeting emission targets?” 

Dr Strain is the Chief Executive of Animal Health and Welfare NI (AHWNI), a not-for-profit company providing industry leadership on the control of endemic infectious diseases of ruminants in Northern Ireland. After working in mixed general practice in Scotland and Northern Ireland for ten years, he was appointed head of the Brucella, Salmonella and TB diagnostic veterinary labs within the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI). His current work focuses on the design, implementation, and management of infectious disease control programmes. He is a member of the all-island (Ireland) Technical Working Groups on Johne’s Disease and Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis (IBR) as well as a board member of the International Association for Paratuberculosis and a steering group member of Ruminant Health and Welfare. 

Dr Strain said: “I’m both honoured and looking forward to supporting the veterinary profession within Northern Ireland. The issues facing the profession are wide ranging, from the most challenging of infectious diseases such as bovine TB to emerging diseases such as bluetongue, from reviews into dog breeding legislation to equine traceability, the list is long and important. I want to champion the role of the veterinary profession within Northern Ireland by working positively and constructively with partners in government, academia, industry, and practice, to help find solutions to problems both old and new.” 

He added: “I want to thank Kirsten and the officer and council teams for their extraordinary commitment and work over the last year. It has been a privilege to serve as Junior Vice President for BVA and I am looking forward to carrying on the work that my predecessors have so ably led on, representing the NI veterinary profession and its priorities.” 

British Veterinary Association President Dr Rob Williams MRCVS said: “Sam has stepped into the role of BVA NI Branch President at an exceedingly busy time for the veterinary sector. With continued access to veterinary medicines still a concern and reform of the Veterinary Surgeons Act on the horizon, it’s essential we have a BVA NI Branch officer team we can rely on to ensure the vet voice is heard and listened to. We are proud to welcome Sam as NI President and look forward to working with him on these complex issues in the coming months.” 

As part of the network of devolved and specialist divisions, BVA Branches contribute local knowledge and expertise to BVA’s wider lobbying and representational activities. For more information about BVA Northern Ireland Branch, please visit www.bva.co.uk/About-BVA/Association/Northern-Ireland-Branch/