At 3pm on the 22nd March 2026 exactly 720 months and 10 days (21,925 days) from the formation of the IGBA, the 2026 AGM closed with 2 major motions before the attending members passing a vote with a convincing majority.
1) The formal establishment of an Overseas Committee reporting to the Main Committee, to be staffed by duly elected Overseas Affiliate Representatives.
and a game changer for the Gloster Canary Fancy worldwide.
2) That the IGBA undertake a restructuring of its constitutional and organisational framework with the objective of assuming the future role of sole International Governing Body for the Gloster Canary Fancy.
The International Gloster Breeders Association (IGBA) now in its 60th Year, held its 2026 AGM on the 22nd March, providing attending members their input into the proposed future of the world’s premier and leading Gloster Canary Association.
Initial problems in finding a hall that was not booked for the latter period of March led the Membership Secretary to secure a venue in the county of Gloucestershire the original home of the development of the Gloster Canary
With 9 proposals on the agenda and 35 voting members attending in person with, another first for the IGBA, 41 Zoom Internet registered connections from as far afield as USA, Europe, China, the attendance represented 19% of IGBA total membership and was the largest attendance for many a long year.
It was a gamble that providing zoom connections to the Far West and Far East of the world and places in between was going to work.
Nothing ventured Nothing gained !!
The IGBA has already embraced technology using the internet for all its committee meetings for many a year without issues.
All started well but technical problems found their way into the equipment and connectivity, making procedures, especially online voting, a tad difficult.
Fortunately, “Back Up” paper voting slips ensured that Zoom attendee decisions were properly received and recorded.
Resident UK attendance voting initially consisted of a show of hands for each proposal with a final completion of attendees voting slips, which when added to the internet attendees, provided conclusive proof of the For, Against and Abstention votes.
Feedback from zoom delegates indicated a positive reaction to being able to engage in one of the prime events of the year; attendees found the proceedings easy to follow, having received AGM documentation in their own language, many offered suggestions on connection improvements for future years which will be taken on board.
Talking of history, 60 years after its formation by Cliff Harris, Gerry Wolfendale and others, including Colin Bowyer the sole survivor of that enlightened group who were hell bent on getting the Gloster legendary International recognition, the IGBA made yet more history.
It is a fact that in the world of Gloster Canary Breeders and Exhibitors the IGBA holds the premier place; many individuals considering it the leading body.
Well until the weekend of the 22nd March 2026 that was not the case. Premier it may have been, leader sadly not.
One of the motions on the table was going to be a major history making decision and a massive step forward for the IGBA and its membership.
“That the IGBA undertakes a restructuring of its constitutional and organisational framework with the objective of assuming the future role of sole governing body for the Gloster Fancy Canary.”
Some say at long last the IGBA committee was heeding membership cries and finally stepping up to propose the IGBA should provide future sole governance of the Gloster Fancy.
This proposal came about primarily because the IGBA, which has not affiliated to the Gloster Fancy Canary Council for the last 7 year for various reasons that do not need to be aired, received member support for the IGBA committee to recognise its past 2 ballots where a membership of 460 members and 35 affiliates voted 86% Against joining the GFCC and should now step forward to lead..
Fast forward to the weekend of the 22nd March 2026 and the membership in physical attendance intensely debated the motion and when the time came to vote and counting the voting slips the result was almost identical to the prior 2 ballots of all members BUT in the opposite direction 86% in Favour of the IGBA becoming the Future Sole Governing Body for Glosters with 11% Against and 3% Abstained.
Other motions that were passed were (% For-Against-Abstain)
- For the IGBA to formally establish an Overseas Committee (90%-7%-3%)
- Acceptance of Accounts (99-0-1)
- Membership fees to remain at 2025 levels for 2026 & 2027 (99-1-0)
- Affiliation fees to remain at 2025 levels for 2026 (100-0-0)
- Overseas Judges at the members show to increase from 1 to 2 (95-1-4)
- Reduce time barring Judges at IGBA show from 5 years to 3 years (84-8-8)
- Restrict Judging Expense reimbursement (38-57-5)
- Reorganise IGBA to become future sole governing body (86-11-3)
- Draft constitution and rules (86-11-3)
All Gloster Breeder / Exhibitors will agree that any Governing Body needs to be autonomous with no overriding influence by or from any single person or organisation.
The restructuring of the IGBA organisational and constitutional framework will ensure that this is the case.
The Governing Body will sit under the IGBA umbrella much like Skoda, Audi, Fiat sit under the VW organisation as autonomous units. Different name (Confederation of International Gloster Breeders), Different committee members (only 1 – ONE IGBA member)
It will feed off the respected name of the IGBA which will restructure itself into two separate autonomous sections – One devoted to Governance; One Devoted to pursuing its current activities.
The 2026 AGM Powerpoint presentation is available on the members page. Read through the presentation it provides an insight into the IGBA during the year 2025 and identifies the Pros and Cons for this motion and reasoning for the members in attendance voting in favour of the motion.
Minutes of the meeting will be available on the members page as soon as possible .
As change takes place you will be advised, don’t expect a rushed response, this transition will be undertaken in a timely manner, everything IGBA has achieved to date, and it is a lot, is done with thought.
R Mortimer – General Secretary for IGBA Committee 26th March 2026
