Professor Steve Edwards appointed new interim chief executive

Professor Steve Edwards, the former chief executive of the UK Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA), is the new interim chief executive of Animal Health. This body is the executive agency of the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). Professor Edwards succeeds Glenys Stacey, who has taken up the post of chief executive of the Standards Board for England. In his new role, Professor Edwards will be responsible for the delivery of Animal Health's performance targets, and for ensuring propriety in managing public funds. He will also lead the agency's business reform programme, which is to modernize Animal Health's operating model.

Professor Edwards qualified as a veterinary surgeon in 1972. After four years in general farm practice, he gained a scholarship from the UK government and studied for an MSc in Tropical Veterinary Science at the University of Edinburgh in 1977. Following work in El Salvador and Bolivia, he joined the VLA as a research officer, specializing in viral respiratory diseases of cattle, especially infectious bovine rhinotracheitis. He also developed the virological laboratory skills within the VLA and is involved with the World Organisation for Animal Health.



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