Nigel Gibbens

Early life and education

Gibbens was born on 1 March 1958 in Dover, Kent, England. He studied at the Royal Veterinary College, graduating with a Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine degree in 1981. He then earned a Masters Degree in Tropical Veterinary Medicine at the University of Edinburgh.

Career

Early career (1980s-2007)

He holds an honorary professorship from the Royal Veterinary College. Early in his career, in worked in private practice, and also veterinary services in Belize and Yemen. He joined the UK government in 1990. Prior to 2008, he had roles in the State Veterinary Service, and policy roles in international trade, BSE controls, and other roles for Defra's Food and Farming Group.

UK Chief Veterinary Officer (2008-2018)

On 21 May 2008, Gibbens became the Chief Veterinary Officer (CVO) of the United Kingdom and for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). Ultimately, he was the UK's Chief Veterinary Officer from May 2008 to March 2018.

As CVO, Gibbens was supportive of the culling of badgers in an attempt to control the spread of bovine tuberculosis, describing the practice as "the best available option". He supported the controversial culls in 2013, which was ongoing in 2016.

In December 2016, he announced Avian Influenza Prevention Zones for Great Britain, declaring a "prevention zone" for England to limit the spread of bird flu, requiring commercial and individual bird keepers to keep their birds inside for 30 days, or take steps to separate them from wild birds. The order was texted to poultry farmers. In December 2017, he spoke against several UK supermarkets' proposal to ban the sale of eggs from caged hens, arguing "colony cages" helped protect flocks from bird flu. Afterwards, other vets wrote a letter to The Times calling the statement "disappointing" concerning animal welfare, saying there were ways to handle bird flu without caging. At the time, Gibbens advised the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

He was succeeded as the UK's Chief Veterinary Officer by Christine Middlemiss in December 2017, stepping down at the end of February 2018 after having served as CVO for ten years.

Recent positions (2019-present)

In 2019, Gibbens joined a committee set up to advise the Brazilian chicken trade body, ABPA, on European consumers. It held its first meeting on 1 July 2019. In 2020, he was named to the newly formed Trade and Agriculture Commission in the UK, as the only veterinarian out of 16 members. As of 2020, he also chaired The Working Group of the British Veterinary Association. He is a member of the RUMA Independent Scientific Group.

Honours

He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2016 New Year Honours.

References

References

1. "Nigel Gibbens".
2. "Gibbens, Nigel Paul" ''[[Who's Who (UK). Who's Who]]'' Oxford University Press. [http://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/10.1093/ww/9780199540884.001.0001/ww-9780199540884-e-249456 Accessed 2 December 2017]
3. https://www.ruma.org.uk/independent-scientific-group/
4. (21 May 2008). "Chief Veterinary Officer appointed". UK government.
5. (3 April 2014). "No badger cull expansion after trial failure". BBC News.
6. . ["Nigel Gibbens"](https://www.gov.uk/government/people/nigel-gibbens). *Gov.uk*.
7. (12 September 2017). "U.K. expands kill zone for badgers in fight against bovine TB, sparking controversy". [[Science (journal).
8. . (October 27, 2013). ["Queen's Brian May leads Britain's badger defenders"](https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/10/27/britain-badger-cull/3142397/).
9. Damian Carrington. (December 16, 2016). ["Badger cull kills more than 10,000 animals in three months"](https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/dec/16/badger-cull-kills-more-than-10000-animals-three-months-bovine-tb). *[[The Guardian]]*.
10. . (December 8, 2016). ["Chief Vet Declares Avian Influenza Prevention Zones in Great Britain"](https://www.bsava.com/article/chief-vet-declares-avian-influenza-prevention-zones-in-great-britain/). *BSAVA*.
11. Matthew Weaver. (December 7, 2016). ["Bird flu warning: keepers told to keep poultry inside"](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/dec/07/bird-flu-warning-keepers-told-to-keep-poultry-inside). *[[The Guardian]]*.
12. Harriet Agerholm. (December 2, 2017). "Government's chief vet says supermarket plan to stop selling non-free range eggs 'regrettable'". [[The Independent]].
13. Gordon Davidson. (December 5, 2017). ["A new Chief Vet at Defra"](https://www.thescottishfarmer.co.uk/news/15701555.a-new-chief-vet-at-defra/). *The Scottish Farmer*.
14. . (December 4, 2017). ["Defra appoints new chief veterinary officer"](https://meatmanagement.com/news/defra-appoints-new-chief-veterinary-officer/40909.article). *Meat Management*.
15. Chloe Ryan. (July 1, 2019). "Former UK chief vet Nigel Gibbens joins scientific committee advising Brazilian poultry sector on European consumers". Poultry News.
16. Paul Imrie. (July 14, 2020). "BVA calls for trade commission balance rethink". Vet Times.
17. . (March 4, 2020). ["BVA seeks input to consultation on defining “Under Our Care”"](https://vetmg.com/bva-seeks-input-to-consultation-on-under-care/). *Veterinary Management Group*.
18. https://www.ruma.org.uk/independent-scientific-group/
19. {{London Gazette. (30 December 2015)