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Report on the National Council for
Aviculture’s 2022 Annual General Meeting and subsequent
management committee meeting held at the Charnwood Arms Hotel,
Coalville, Leicestershire on Saturday, 9th April
commencing 10.35am
Attendance at the AGM was affected by ill health,
clashes of meeting dates and again by Covid. The chairman, Barry
Mills, tested positive the Thursday before the meeting and so
submitted a written report distributed at the meeting. The
Budgerigar Society and Canary Council were fully represented and
affiliated clubs were also present.
President, Chris Smith, took over the chair, and took
the meeting through the minutes of the 2021 AGM which were accepted
as a true record and there were no matters arising.
The Secretary read the Chairman’s written report
which thanked everyone for attending and acknowledged the continued
hard work of the Council’s officers, particularly the
Secretary/Treasurer, Ghalib Al-Nasser, and President, Chris Smith.
He directed the attention of delegates to a number of agenda items
including finance, support of the National Exhibition on 2nd
October and the future of the NCA itself.
Treasurer’s Report
and Approval of the Balance Sheet.
Ghalib Al-Nasser
presented the Balance Sheet, which showed a higher profit than in
2020. The increase was mainly due to paying less for the insurance
due to fewer societies applying for the PLI because of the pandemic.
However, the cost for buying the insurance from the broker has risen
from £47 to £50 per Society commencing from 2022. Our financial
situation remains strong and the Balance Sheet was approved
unanimously.
The Treasurer read out a letter from the Auditor suggesting ways to
utilise some of the large amount that the NCA have accumulated for
the benefit of the fancy. After discussion it was proposed and
passed unanimously that we give free insurance in 2023 to all
clubs who applied for the PLI in 2022. This will cost the NCA in
the region of £4k - £5k.
Secretary’s Report.
Ghalib Al-Nasser read out his report that he had sent to all the
paid-up affiliated societies for 2022, with the AGM agenda.
“Where did those 3 years since our last physical AGM back in 2019
go? It was certainly a very hard 2 years we all had to endure
through Covid.
Since the last AGM, held by zoom last May, the Management Committee
has met once (16th February) by zoom. Main topics were
Finances, Foreign Bird Federation, CBS Liaison Officer and the
presidency term. Some of those topics form part of the AGM Agenda.
Like all societies around the country our activities during last
year have been very minimal but we kept ticking over, as they say.
After the tremendous uptake on the Public Liability Insurance Scheme
in 2019 resulting in 193 societies taking up the affiliation and
insurance, those figures were extremely low during 2020 resulting in
a refund by the Insurance company. The 2021 season was slightly
better and so far in 2022 78 societies have applied for the
insurance scheme. The NCA buy the bulk insurance scheme from the
insurance broker MEAD at £50 per society and with the cost of the 4
rosettes and postage that we send to each affiliated society the
total cost amounts to about £58 and we only charge each society £60.
Election of Officers
– The following NCA Officers were elected and passed unanimously:
Vice Chairman:
Chris Smith
Secretary/Treasurer:
Ghalib Al-Nasser
Minutes Secretary:
Ghalib Al-Nasser
Publicity Officer:
Barry Mills
Awards Panel:
the whole Management Committee
President for 2022
– In view of
the Covid situation it
was agreed we should now look towards having the presidency role for
2 years rather than annually.
It was agreed to extend Chris’s presidential role for
another year till the 2023 AGM.
Election of President-Elect for
2022.
Ghalib Al-Nasser was already elected to this role at last year’s AGM
so he will serve in that capacity for 2022 and will become the
President in 2023.
To Receive the Names of the
Management Committee.
The following names were put forward:
BS: Ghalib Al-Nasser,
John Cosby, Terry Tuxford, Chris Snell.
CC: Chris Smith, Keith
Ferry, Saviour Camilleri.
The Secretary read out a letter that he received from Dennis Webster
which highlighted reasons for his decision to step down from the NCA
Management Committee. Main reasons were due to arthritis in his
hands and wrists that are getting worse making it difficult to take
notes for minutes, travelling long distances which has now forced
him to reduce his stock and bird society positions. The current
demise of the FBF did not help but he thanked the MC and had enjoyed
his time serving on the NCA MC and wished all concerned best wishes
for the future.
Similar email received from Robb Brown highlighting similar problems
of lack of members to help within the British Bird Council who will
continue to affiliate to the NCA but will not be able to send
delegates to meetings unless it involves important matters that are
appertaining to the British Bird Fancy.
Both Barry Mills and Dennis Webster had written to all the seven FBF
affiliated societies asking for support but to no avail.
It was agreed to leave the door open for 12 months for both the BBC
and FBF to send any delegate before a final decision is taken. Any
ideas will be helpful.
To Elect the Auditors.
Paul Tiller FCCA was again elected to be auditor for the NCA.
CBS Liaison Officer
- Ghalib informed the meeting that Keith Barker was not able
to carry on with his full duties of CBS Liaison Officer but was
willing to promote the NCA in the north east and Scotland. This was
agreed with much appreciation
NCA Stand at Exhibitions – It was agreed to have the NCA stand at
the following:
Parrot Society Summer Show
Stafford Spring Show in March
The National in October
We continued to support the National Exhibition last year
with £320 prize money and rosettes divided equally for the Best in
each of the 5 sections. The management committee decided at its
meeting to increase this sum to £600 for 2022.
National Exhibition
- Rosettes and cash specials. Rosettes will be awarded in all five
sections of the National Exhibition and prize money is increased as
follows:
£50 Best Canary, £30 2nd best canary, £20 3rd
best canary.
£50 Best British, £30 2nd best British, £20 3rd
best British.
£50 Best Foreign, £30 2nd best foreign, £20 3rd
best foreign.
£25 Best Zebra Finch, £15 2nd best zebra finch, £10 3rd
best zebra finch.
£25 Best Bengalese, £15 2nd best Bengalese, £10 3rd
best Bengalese.
£30 Best Champion Budgerigar.
£30 Best Intermediate Budgerigar.
£30 Best Novice Budgerigar.
£10 Best Colour Budgerigar.
£20 Best Junior Canary
£20 Best Junior British
£20 Best Junior Foreign
£20 Best Junior Zebra Finch or Bengalese Finch
£20 Best Junior Budgerigar
On behalf of the
Canary Council, Chris read out a letter received from our
Chairman Barry Mills who in turn received an official letter from
the FFF with the main part being “Fife Fancy Federation (FFF)
wishes to be acknowledged by the Canary Council & NCA as the only
recognised governing body for the Fife Fancy Canary within the UK
and then, if accepted in Europe, through the NCA and COM”.
This came about from the
division that was created recently in the Fife Fancy whereby another
group by the name of the Fife Canary Council (FCC) are in opposition
to the FFF.
Keith Ferry agreed with
the sentiment of the letter and for the FFF to be acknowledged as
the parent body affiliated to the Canary Council but suggested that
we should not be too hard if the FCC want to use the FFF standard.
It was agreed
unanimously, that we should only accept societies that are
affiliated to our parent bodies and their pictorial ideals can be
used by other groups.
Subsequent to this
meeting and a joint statement made by the chairmen of the FFF and
FCC on Facebook which indicated a desire to reduce animosity within
the Fife fancy, the Canary Council accepted an application to
affiliate from the FCC in the hope that in the months ahead a joint
solution to the rift can be worked at. The Canary Council could
provide a forum for that to occur.
The Portuguese Harlequin Facebook group asked the NCA for
assistance with the type of show cage that they need to use for
their breed. At the Canary Council AGM on Sunday it was agreed that
either the Colour canary show cage or the white continental show
cage could be used. The Canary Council recommended that the
Harlequin Facebook group form a Harlequin Canary Club and choose
their own preferred show cage.
COM-UK
(the federation between the NCA and IOA) had a similar low-key
period as we had no World show to attend in 2021 and 2022 due to
cancellation and of course restriction with movement of birds due to
Brexit. We are all looking forward to the COM 2023 World Show to be
held in Italy again (venue to be decided) and hopefully the DEFRA
restrictions are less stringent from what they are now so that we
can participate at the show. The President, Chris Smith, said that
the situation with bird movement is imposed upon us by the EU which
DEFRA supported and quarantines to be applied. Meetings with DEFRA
continue but any legislation is slow coming and has to go to
Parliament for approval and an import/export license is needed.
To Determine the Rate of
Subscription for 2023. It was agreed that subscriptions would remain the
same as for 2022.
There being no other matters referred from affiliated clubs or the
management committee the
Date and Venue of the 2023 Annual General Meeting was agreed as
Saturday 1st April 2023 at the Charnwood Arms Hotel if this was available. |
