It will be the end of January or into February 2022 before Minister for Agriculture Edwin Poots will be in a position to announce a way forward on a new TB strategy in NI, DAERA officials told MLAs on the Stormont agriculture committee last Thursday.In the meantime, a group of independent consultants have been brought in to produce a report on the likely environmental impact of any policy changes.
It will be the end of January or into February 2022 before Minister for Agriculture Edwin Poots will be in a position to announce a way forward on a new TB strategy in NI, DAERA officials told MLAs on the Stormont agriculture committee last Thursday.
In the meantime, a group of independent consultants have been brought in to produce a report on the likely environmental impact of any policy changes.
Once that report is complete, it will be considered along with advice from officials and responses to the public consultation, confirmed DAERA director Neal Gartland.
The strategy will be taken forward as one programme of measures
However, while decisions might be taken early in 2022, a potential cull of badgers in TB hotspot areas may yet be some time off.
“The strategy will be taken forward as one programme of measures. Wildlife intervention, compensation regime change will require legislation. Some things will move quicker than others,” said Gartland.
Justify plans
During the meeting, DAERA officials were asked to justify their plans for wildlife intervention, which essentially involve seven years of culling in TB hotspot areas, followed by a badger vaccination programme. “You need to bring the infection load down and to do that you need to bring the population down. But the end of it all is always to move to vaccination whenever we could,” said DAERA vet Raymond Kirke.
He told MLAs that the cull areas chosen will be where there is prolonged cattle TB incidence, a significant badger population and a likely spillover of TB into badgers, and spill-back into cattle.
Deer
Kirke was also asked about the potential role of deer in TB spread, and confirmed that this is currently the subject of research by scientists at AFBI. However, out of 500 deer heads collected in association with the hunting community, only 11 tested positive for TB.
If there is an issue, it is towards the west and the southwest
“Although deer are attributed to be a cause in certain localities, the evidence for that isn’t there at present. If there is an issue, it is towards the west and the southwest,” said Kirke.
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