Summarised Report of the Minutes of the Budgerigar Society General Council Meeting

Summarised Report of the Minutes of the Budgerigar Society General Council Meeting,
held on Thursday, 13^th October 2022 commencing at 7.15pm via zoom.

1. Chairman’s Welcome – the Chairman welcomed all to the meeting and thanked them for their support as most attended the recent Club Show. He was sorry to learn that some members, including Councillors, had Covid just after the show and he hoped that all had fully recovered. He commented on the many parts of the country affected by the bird flu which seems to be more prevalent this year and he sympathised with any shows which had to be cancelled.
2. Apologies for Absence – Jason Julien was unable to attend as he was doing subscription renewals / ring orders and Ronnie Simpson who was on holiday.
3. Judges Training Scheme – rule amendment to allow Novices into scheme – this subject was deferred to allow the GC the chance to study the proposal made by the sub-group. Unanimously agreed.
4. Judges Handbook – the handbook was to be issued at the Club Show has been delayed. After discussion, it was agreed that we should allow the magazine designer to complete the job. This was agreed on a vote of 12 for and 1 against.
5. Colour Standards Book Review – the Chairman advised that the current Colour Standards book was published in 2012 and it has been suggested that we should review it and include the newer varieties that are now being seen on the show bench. We are currently out of stock of the book and now could be the right time to review it. A small reprint of a year’s supply has been ordered and this will give us time to do the review. This was agreed and a small sub-group formed.
6. Club Show – everyone involved in the Club Show were thanked for their sterling efforts in producing another memorable event. On behalf of the Club Show Committee, a verbal update was provided based on a vote of thanks to the many people who contributed to its success. The Club Show Committee will meet in early November and the Council were asked to give feedback on the show so it can be included in the agenda of this meeting. The Committee will be looking at the show format and duration. Reference was made about the two “living legends” who officiated at their last Club Show – Dave Hislop, Club Show Director, and Ronnie Simpson, Club Show Secretary. Both will be extremely hard to replace but it is hoped that a new Club Show Secretary will be announced after the meeting.

7a M Jarrold Letter – Mike Jarrold has questioned the number of judges engaged for the Club Show based on the reducing number of exhibits. The GC were reminded that the GC has already selected 13 judges for the 2023 show. This will be referred to the Club Show Committee who will consider the number of judges engaged for 2023 and beyond. This was agreed.

7b M Jarrold – completion of CC’s –Mike Jarrold also brought to the notice of the GC that certain CC’s are not being completed correctly. There were some instances of this at the Club Show and these errors made by judges were corrected immediately. The discussion then went on to the issue of Colour Budgerigar CC’s not always being completed at some shows. This may be happening as these birds do not compete for Best in Show and after judging they are placed back on the staging. After discussion it was unanimously agreed that we should print a reminder in The Budgerigar to advise our judges, show promoters and exhibitors that the individual Colour Budgerigar CC winning bird must be checked for ring numbers and the CC fully completed just like any other CC.

7c M & D Walker – suggested a change to entry forms to cover the times when birds without an official BS ring are shown. A discussion followed on whether we should amend the entry form to include a tick box for exhibitors to advise if they are showing a non-BS rung bird. It was noted that this could create a problem if the bird was then changed prior to entry. It was observed that we have had this situation for many decades and have a tried and tested system such that if a bird does win a CC then if there is an issue when its ring is checked the CC goes to the second place bird in the CC line-up. After discussion it was proposed and seconded that we introduce a tick box on the entry form but it was defeated on a vote of 5 for and 8 against. In view of this decision, it was proposed that the BS supply an extra 6 CC’s to every show for occasions when a CC has been completed and needs to be changed rather than having to use Tippex which looks very unprofessional. Unused spare CCs to be returned to the BS. This was unanimously supported.

8. Status Promotion – some members appear to be not moving through the statuses as the rules dictate. The subject was discussed as to whether the BS should be involved in administrating this situation. The Patronage Administrator had agreed that this situation does exist and is willing to monitor and police the promotion system and then write to members when it is time to move to the next status. Both fors and againsts were discussed with the complexities of recording class wins throughout a member’s showing history as that this has always been policed by the members themselves. It was proposed that the BS Patronage Administrator takes on this task and when writing to the member it should be in a congratulatory manner and advising they move up to the next section. This was carried with 11 in favour and 2 against.
9. Ideal length – A discussion took place on whether a maximum length be added to the ideal – currently it is 8.5 inches minimum. Many of today’s birds exceed this length and this could give us the opportunity to introduce the long tail as a fault rather than a disqualification. It was suggested that we should leave matters until the WBO has concluded their discussions on our recent request to look at such matters. It was proposed that the BS WBO representatives ask the WBO to consider a maximum length for the ideal when they do their review. This was carried with 8 for 3 against and 2 not voting.
10. R Francis re postal concerns for the 2023 rings – A concern was raised about the impact on ring delivery from postal disputes on 30^th November 2022. The GC were advised that there are planned strikes on the day we are due to post rings and it was suggested that we post a week earlier. It was explained that the BS Office is already experiencing delays of incoming and outgoing mail due to recent postal strikes. The numbers of days of planned strikes are increasing to 3 per week – mostly in November but there is a window around 17 November of 6 clear days without strikes. The ring maker has agreed to post on this date, which is around two weeks earlier than normal, if the strike action is not resolved by then. This will be for this year only. This was unanimously supported.

Please note that members should not contact the BS office to progress the delivery of their orders until after Friday 9^th December 2022.

11. Show Cage Inspector –Gren Norris is our current show cage inspector and has retired on health grounds. It was unanimously agreed that we thank Gren for his work in this role over many years and to promote Adrian Richards with immediate effect.
12. WBO Report – this report was circulated to the GC and a copy is published in the November 2022 edition of The Budgerigar.
13. Joint BS/Area Society membership – the GC were advised that the scheme goes live on 1^st January 2023. The website will be amended to allow a tick box opt out for the new members who do not want their details forwarded to the Area Society of residence because of GDPR. After discussions it was proposed that the £5 payment for each new member should be backdated to include all new members for 2023 who join in 2022. This proposal was successful with 8 in favour and 5 against.
14. AGM 2023 – venue and date – it was previously agreed to build a Sales Day around the AGM at the Bomber Command Centre in Lincoln. The venue is reserved for the weekend of 22/23 April 2023 and consists of a room which seats up to 120, a hall which will hold approx 150 birds and a medium sized canteen. Also next to the site is a Premier Inn Hotel. After discussion it was agreed that we proceed with the GC meeting on the Saturday and a Sales Day event and AGM on the Sunday. This was carried with 12 in favour and 1 against.
15. Chairman/Administrator referrals – The Hilton Garden Hotel in Doncaster for the Club Show weekend may be booked at a special rate of £80 single and £95 double per night. It was agreed for 20 rooms to be booked by the Society for judges etc.
16. Date and subject(s) of our next GC meeting –Thursday, 12^th January 2023 via zoom.
17. Close of meeting – the Chairman brought the meeting to a close at 9.10 p.m.