Chair: Martin Dunwoody (Southampton), Secretary: Ian Leary
(Southampton). Approximately 50 members attended the meeting.

1. The minutes of the Annual General Meeting held in Manchester on April 7^th 1998 were accepted.

2. There were no matters arising.

3. The accounts of the 50^th BMC held at Manchester were accepted.

4. Invitations to future BMCs:
   Professor C Series issued an invitation for the 54^th BMC to be held at Warwick in 2002. This was carried by acclamation.
   Professor A Newell reiterated this invitation, and explained the intention to hold a joint BMC/BAMC in Warwick, starting with a pure mathematics meeting, ending with an applied mathematics meeting, and with a two day intersection of interest to both groups.
   A provisional programme was suggested, in which the meeting would start on Sunday 7^th April 2002, the talks of interest to both pure and applied mathematicians would begin with a plenary talk on the evening of Tuesday 9^th and end with a plenary talk on the morning of Thursday 11th.
   The applied meeting would finish on the evening of Friday 12th.
   Professors J Howie, M J Dunwoody, H K Moffatt and H G Dales spoke in favour of this suggestion, and a proposal that the BMC should endorse the suggestion was passed nem. con.

   Dates of future colloquia:
   The 52^nd BMC would be held at Leeds from 17^th to 20^th April 2000;
   The 53^rd BMC would be held at Glasgow from 9^th April to 12th April 2001.

5. Election of honorary auditors:
   The treasurers of the Edinburgh Mathematical Society and of the London Mathematical Society
   were re-elected.

6. Proposal made by Prof. H G Dales (Leeds), and seconded by Prof. C Series (Warwick):
   It was proposed that the Chairman of the (n+2)^nd BMC and the Chairman and Secretary of the (n+3)^rd BMC be added to the list of members of the Scientific Committee of the n^th BMC, as described in the BMC constitution adopted in Cardiff in1994.
   This was passed nem. con.
   The Scientific Committee of the nth BMC henceforth would consist of:
   Chair of the (n+1)^st BMC (as Chair);
   One member elected by the AGM of the n^th BMC;
   Secretaries of the n^th, (n+1)^st, (n+2)^nd and (n+3)^rd BMCs;
   Chairs of the (n+2)^nd and (n+3)^rd BMCs;
   Three members nominated by the Edinburgh Mathematical Society;
   Three members nominated by the London Mathematical Society.

7. Election of an additional member of the Scientific Committee for 1999:
   Professor Tony O'Farrell of the University of Maynooth was elected.

8. Any other business:
   Professor K A Brown initiated a discussion on the numbers attending BMCs. He saw a general downward trend in numbers, comparing the Southampton figure of 165 to the attendance figure for the 50^th BMC in Manchester of 195 and earlier figures. He pointed out that the LMS grants given to the BMC were increasing year by year, so that effectively the subsidy per member was increasing drastically. The largest BMCs in recent years had had a number of satellite conferences.

   Professor H G Dales mentioned that Leeds and others had applied to EPSRC for funding for satellite conferences to the 52^nd BMC, but had been turned down. Dr D J H Garling suggested that Leeds should investigate linking the BMC with EPSRC instructional courses, and that Professor H G Dales should contact Professor E Rees concerning such courses. Professor M J Dunwoody added his support to this idea, and suggested that EPSRC instructional courses that are not linked to the BMC may have the effect of reducing BMC attendance.

   Various other suggestions for increasing the attendance at future BMCs were made. It was agreed that the favourable rates for postgraduate student attendance should be more widely publicized.
   

Minutes signed by Ian Leary, Secretary, 51^st BMC (undated).

[See Item 6: Attached sheet

Professor Martin Dunwoody,
Faculty of Mathematical Studies,
Southampton University,
Highfield,
SOUTHAMPTON,
S09 5NH.

15 March, 1999

Dear Martin,

BMC

Here is my proposal for the General Meeting at Southampton.

The Constitution of the BMC was adopted at the BMC in Cardiff, 1994.
It specifies that the Scientific Committee at the n^th BMC should consist of the following members:

(a) The chair of the (n+1)^st BMC (as Chair);

(b) One member elected by the AGM of the n^th BMC;

(c) The BMC secretaries for the n^th, (n+l)^st and (n+2)^nd BMC;

(d) three members nominated by the Edinburgh Mathematical Society;

(e) three members nominated by the London Mathematical Society;

It is proposed that the following extra persons become members:

(f) the Chairman of the (n+2)^nd BMC;

(g) the Chairman and Secretary of the (n+3)^rd BMC.

Sincerely,

Garth

H.G. Dales ]