NFU to pursue coordination in fight against TB
The NFU is pursuing the government to deliver a coordinated approach to combating Bovine Tuberculosis, which involves tackling the disease in both livestock and wildlife at the same time.
The NFU, along with the veterinary establishment, believes measures to control the disease and limit the suffering of livestock and wildlife will ultimately prove futile unless the brave decision is taken to tackle the disease where it is found, be it in domestic or wild animals.
To achieve this aim the NFU is pursuing legal avenues with a view to overturning the introduction of pre-movement testing in the short term, in order to ensure that when it is introduced it is fully resourced and part of a more coordinated approach to tackling the disease.
The challenge will be made on the grounds that despite several commitments to consult publicly on the issue, Defra made the executive decision to impose this measure without consultation. The NFU believes the lack of consultation has jeopardised the implementation of pre-movement testing.
Chief among the concerns is the fact that less than a month from the proposed start date structures are still not in place to effectively carry out the testing regime. Currently there is an inadequate number of veterinary staff trained and in place to carry out the necessary procedures and the paperwork which will need to be implemented is yet to be fully completed and tested.
NFU President Tim Bennett said: "We fully appreciate the demand for pre-movement testing but it must be carried out in an effective way and be part of a coordinated approach to tackling this disease. Currently that isn't the case. Defra has spoken often about the need to work in partnership, particularly in relation to animal health and welfare. We were very disappointed not to have been given the opportunity to meet that aim on this issue. I believe it has led to a number of serious faults in the proposal, which will need to be overcome before pre-movement testing can be introduced."
"We are pursuing the overturning of pre-movement testing at this time, not because we oppose it as a measure, but because it is a measure that cannot be properly delivered without full consultation and because we believe it will only prove effective if introduced in concert with other measures designed to control this disease in wildlife.
"I look forward to working with all interested parties to ensure we end the needless suffering of livestock and wildlife by eliminating tuberculosis in both."
