Paul Rees is set to step down from his role as chief executive of the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) and become the interim chief executive and registrar of the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) from January.

He will be tasked with overseeing the establishment a programme to transform the nursing regulator's culture and performance, following an independent review that found racism, discrimination and bullying within the organisation.

The NPA said it will engage a recruitment agency to help identify its next chief executive and hopes to make an appointment in the New Year.

And NPA vice-chair Nick Kaye assured members that its aims and campaigning work would continue unchanged.

Speaking to The Pharmacist, he said that the last year had been a 'whirlwind', with Mr Rees doing 'a great job' of establishing changes at the NPA.

During Mr Rees' tenure, the NPA has delivered two 'days of action' and balloted its members in England, Wales and Northern Ireland with the majority voting in favour of collective action from January.

Mr Kaye said that he wished Mr Rees all the best, and assured pharmacists that he wasn't worried that the team would not be able to carry on with the 'great campaign strategy' it was delivering.

'The NPA is stronger than ever and everything the team does is there to support our members and their teams, who work tirelessly to support their communities. We’re excited about how we can build even better support and advocacy for our members in the months to come,' he said in a statement issued by the NPA today.

Meanwhile, Mr Rees said that leaving would be 'a real wrench', but that 'the pull of helping the NMC to eliminate racism and bullying from within the organisation, embed a positive and inclusive culture, and improve the quality of patient care' was 'just too great'.

'It is because of the scale of the challenge and the need to move with urgency and at pace, that the NMC has asked me to join the team in mid-January,' he added.

'I have been deeply affected by working with the NPA – community pharmacy will always have a special place in my heart, even as I move into another part of the healthcare sector,' Mr Rees said.

And he added that the NPA has a 'very bright future'.

Mr Rees will join the NMC on a one-year contract from January, and it will be recruiting for a permanent chief executive after its new chair is appointed in 2025.