Urgent: Vote NO to the RPS Becoming the Royal College of Pharmacy

Dear Pharmacists,

I am reaching out to encourage those of you who are RPS members to vote NO to the proposal for the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) to become the Royal College of Pharmacy. Here’s why:

 • Loss of Professional Representation: The RPS currently serves as the professional body for pharmacists - safeguarding, honouring and promoting their interests. Becoming a Royal College and a charity as proposed would change its objects away from representing pharmacists and instead it would be required to act for the public benefit - similar to bodies such as the GPhC, and the government.

 • Impact on Membership and Influence: since the college would not act in the interests of pharmacists, this could weaken our collective voice and dilute our influence in key policy decisions. The governing bodies of the college could end up being run entirely by non-pharmacists - there is nothing in the charter to prevent this and it may be seen by the trustees as desirable.

 • Unclear Benefits: There is no clear evidence that this change would bring meaningful advantages to pharmacists in practice, while the risks to professional representation are significant.

 • Loss of RPS assets: The RPS’s assets, accrued since 1841 in no small part from members’ contributions, would effectively be donated to charity. Its people, building, resources, library, museum etc. would be repurposed for the public benefit. If the proposal went ahead, pharmacists may be the first profession in history to donate their professional body to charity.

• Risk to Pharmacist Support: The college’s objects would be similar to those of Pharmacist Support and it could end up competing for donations. The current RPS leadership can give no guarantees as to how the college trustees would act.

The RPS should remain focused on supporting and advocating for pharmacists, rather than pursuing a title change with uncertain consequences.

Please take the time to vote and say NO to this change to protect our profession’s future.

Best regards,

Tohidul Islam MRPharmS

CEO

The Pharmacist Cooperative