surrounding the employment status of a newly arrived veterinarian from Montserrat.

Reacting to concerns raised by the Bermuda Veterinarian Association, Mr.

Edness scotched rumours that Dr. G.B. Swanston has been given permission "to set up (a) practice'' in Bermuda.

"It is not true and I apologise for the confusion,'' Mr. Edness told The Royal Gazette .

Dr. Swanston has received permission only to seek employment on Bermuda, but would have to seek work like anyone else, said Mr. Edness.

The misunderstanding arose following an interview with Premier Pamela Gordon on the British Broadcasting Corporation's Caribbean Report, he said. In a statement subsequently sent to The Royal Gazette by Government, the Premier is quoted as saying: "In addition, the Bermuda Government has made it possible for a professional husband and wife team to set up practice in Bermuda.'' The wife, Dr. Sonia Meade, is already engaged in a one-year locum at Dr. Ewart Brown's Bermuda Health Care Services, Mr. Edness said.

It is understood however that Dr. Swanston, who was educated in Nairobi, Kenya, may not hold the necessary licence qualifications set out recently by the BVA and backed by Government.

Sensitivity to the licensing issue came to a head earlier this year after Government's veterinarian trainee, Dr. Susann Smith, was let go from her contract after failing on four occasions to pass a US-based National Board Exam.

The BVA has argued it has been a convention for the past 35 years that only those who hold credentials from the US, Canada, the UK or Europe, can practice on the Island. It is also understood that was a requirement for the Government post, which has been filled by Bermudian vet Dr. Jonathan Nesbitt.

HEALTH HTH