Vets warn disruption to TB eradication programme 'almost inevitable'

The warning from the Association of Veterinary Surgeons Practising in Northern Ireland (AVSPN) comes just four days before the end of the current TB testing contract with DAERA, with no sign yet of a replacement for NI vets to consider.

The Association said that without any testing programme, ‘NI has no TB control policy’.

In a statement released this evening AVSPN pointed out that NI beef sales to GB and beyond are worth £1bn and the dairy sector represents 31% of NI’s total agricultural gross output.

"Yet we see bovine TB herd incidence soaring – it is now above 10% for the first time in 20 years and brings immeasurable stress and hardship to farmers every year."

The statement continues: “Our neighbours in the Republic have a herd incidence of around 4% - this disease does not respect borders – the difference is down to a robust and multi-faceted TB control programme in the Republic which includes meaningful wildlife intervention.

"The Association of Veterinary Surgeons Practising in Northern Ireland (AVSPNI) represents well over 500 vets in practice in Northern Ireland and its members carry out the majority of TB tests here.

"They are united in frustration at the general lack of progress in tackling bovine TB and other animal health and welfare challenges. DAERA have failed to act on the recommendations of their own consultations and those of the TB Eradication Partnership (TBEP), the independent panel of experts they appointed to input into a new strategy to drive forward the eradication of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in Northern Ireland.

"The bTB skin test is one of the few tools currently deployed here so AVSPNI members are further frustrated that DAERA appears to be sleepwalking into a potentially disastrous break in TB testing through its failure to produce a fair and acceptable contract for TB testing in a timely fashion,” the statement adds.

“NI vets do not want to be part of a TB testing machine that is not delivering results for the NI herd. If we continue to do what we are currently doing, we can expect to see TB incidence and the cost of TB control to the taxpayer continue to rise.

"AVSPNI members share other agri-stakeholders frustration with the lack of progress regarding not just TB but also highly significant endemic infectious diseases which impact not only on animal health and welfare but also trade (BVD, Johnes, IBR).

"AVSPNI members would welcome the opportunity to play a more constructive role in eradication of all of these diseases, yet the whole industry seems held back by DAERA’s inaction,” the Association claimed.

"It is morally unacceptable to continue to spend millions on a TB programme that appears to have little direction and control.

"We are four working days from the end of the current TB testing contract yet there is no sign of a replacement for NI vets to consider.

"The delay is symptomatic of a general lack of leadership regarding this disease. More worryingly, all indications are that the new contract is for six months only, causing concern for the stability of the testing programme overall.

“AVSPNI is concerned that the delay in issuing a contract to its members means that disruption to the current TB eradication programme is now almost inevitable. Without any testing programme, NI has NO TB control policy!”