March 2008 3www.the-actuary.org.ukTheActuaryMarch 2008I recently learned that Joint Council proposes that the membership votes on whether the Institute and Faculty should be merged into one body. Being a fellow of the Institute I have also been offered, and have accepted, the opportunity to vote in a ballot to determine whether one of our students should be awarded fellowship status without completing the exams. These are two important decisions which, if they result in af64257 rmative majorities, I believe will change the face of the Actuarial Profession as we know it.A merged professional body would look and feel very different to the Institute and Faculty. I know that there are people reading this that will be horri64257 ed at the prospect of a merger, or takeover, as it may even be seen by some. Others may see the cost savings and other bene64257 ts achieved by a merger as sensible. We are pleased to have managed to gather some thoughts from both camps on pages 12 and 13.Turning to the other decision I am faced with this month, my view is that the Andrew Smith ballot is as critical as a potential merger, as it could result in the rare event of a member becoming a fellow by an alternative route other than through examination (all fellows were admitted this way before there were exams). If this happens, the Profession must be careful to distinguish between this case and others and ensure that it does not become anything other than a once-in-a-generation occurrence.I believe that the debate is on a matter of principle rather than at a personal level. Andrew has contributed an enormous amount to the profession, including The Actuary, and the Institute has stated that this is a one-off case. I do, however, have two concerns with the ballot process itself. One, if a merger takes place, the result of this ballot could affect current members of the Faculty as well as the Institute. In light of this, I would argue it unfair to exclude Faculty members8217 views on whether a student should be elected to fellow without completing the exams.Secondly, I feel that the students8217 perspective on this matter is crucial, as they are the members who could quite possibly end up in a similar position to Andrew and so their thoughts on this may have a different slant to current fellows. It is regrettable, therefore, that no steps were taken to 64257 nd out the students8217 view.By the time that this edition of the magazine is distributed, the deadline for returning proxy voting forms in respect of Andrew will have passed. The timing of the vote announcement and deadline is unfortunate as there has been no opportunity for the magazine to host a debate on the matter. This is disappointing as The Actuary is one of the key methods by which members of the Profession can express and share their views. If you couldn8217t vote but felt that your view should have been taken into account, I would urge you to let the Profession know as soon as possible.New team membersThe editorial team is expanding and I am delighted to announce that Amy Guna of Grant Thornton will be joining us next month as social editor, and Matthew Fewster from JP Morgan and Finn Clawson from Hewitt Associates will be taking on the Arts page. If you have any comments or suggestions for either of these sections, please let me know.Margaret de ValoisEditoreditor@the-actuary.org.ukThe right to voteEditorialSee page 5 for full details of the editorial teamIncisive Financial Publishing32-34 Broadwick Street, London W1A 2HGT +44 (0)20 7316 9000PublisherPhilip HardingT +44 (0)20 7316 9393E philip.harding@incisivemedia.comRecruitment advertising managerHazell CockleT +44 (0)20 7316 9493E hazell.cockle@incisivemedia.comDesignerNicky BrownSub-editorsDavid WhittamAnn IvesProduction managerMatt ParleT +44 (0)20 7316 9766E matt.parle@incisivemedia.comGroup editor-in-chiefAnthony GouldGroup publishing directorDerek PeckPrint and distributionBenham Goodhead Print Ltd., OxonSubscriptionsFor subscriptions from outside the actuarial profession: UK, Eire, and Europe: 16350 a year/1635.00 a copy. For the rest of the world: 16375 a year/1637.50 a copy. Please contact:Alastair ClarkThe Actuarial Profession, Napier House, 4 Worcester St, Oxford OX1 2AW T +44(0)1865 268242 E alastair.clark@actuaries.org.uk Students on actuarial science courses at universities may join the Staple Inn Actuarial Society for 1636 a year. They will receive The Actuary as part of their membership. Apply to: Membership Department, The Actuarial Profession, Maclaurin House, 18 Dublin Street, Edinburgh EH1 3PP. T +44 (0)131 240 1325 E membership@actuaries.org.ukChanges of address should be made known to the membership department at the same address.InternetThe Actuary website: www.the-actuary.org.ukSIAS website: www.sias.org.ukActuarial Profession website: www.actuaries.org.ukPublished by the Staple Inn Actuarial SocietyThe editor, the Faculty of Actuaries, the Institute of Actuaries and the Staple Inn Actuarial Society are not responsible for the opinions put forward in The Actuary.169 SIAS March 2008All rights reservedISSN 0960-457X003_Actuary_Editorial_0308.indd 319/2/08 15:35:40
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