Despite the continuing absence of a minister, senior officials in DAERA have received the legal clearance to go ahead with a consultation on new controls designed to tackle the problem of bovine TB in NI.

Due out next month, it is expected that the plan put forward by the Department will be based on recommendations made by the TB Strategic Partnership Group, which completed its report last December.

It made a number of recommendations, some of which will be popular with farmers, and some which will prove to be more controversial.

They include culling of badgers in areas where there are high levels of TB in cattle and evidence of bovine TB in the badger population.

Compensation for reactor animals would be capped at £1,500 for commercial cattle, and £1,800 for pedigree animals, with one pedigree stock bull per year compensated to a maximum of £3,500.