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S Rhosier
Our ref: TO2021/15427
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx
28 July 2021
Dear S Rhosier,
Thank you for your email of 13 June about bovine TB. have been asked to reply. I apologise
for the delay in responding. Defra is currently dealing with high volumes of correspondenc e.
Bovine Tuberculosis (bTB) is a disease with a complex epidemiology, in part because of the
presence of a reservoir of infection in wildlife throughout large areas of England. It is
important, therefore, to pursue a wide range of evidence-led interventions as part of the
Government’s strategy to achieve Official y TB Free (OTF) status for England by 2038.
Routine and targeted TB testing of cattle herds, movement restrictions on infected herds,
and rapid detection and removal of cattle testing positive, remain the foundations of the
Government’s strategy, supported by statutory pre- and post-movement testing of cattle and
slaughterhouse surveillance.
To reinforce those measures, from 1 January 2022 the Government will be increasing the
frequency of mandatory surveil ance testing throughout England’s High-Risk Area (HRA)
from annual to every six-months, with some exceptions for lower risk herds1. The
Government also remain committed to supporting and strengthening biosecurity to limit the
risk and severity of TB breakdowns on cattle farms.
As part of a substantial and wide-ranging research and development programme, with a
particular focus on diagnostics and vaccine development, the Government is working to
develop a deployable cattle TB vaccine. This work is on track to be completed by 2025 and
involves trialling the candidate vaccine alongside the candidate diagnostic test to detect
infected animals among vaccinated animals (DIVA).
1
https://tbhub.co.uk/tb-policy/england/six-monthly-surveillance-testing-of-cattle-herds-in-the-high-risk-area/
As wider preventive measures like cattle vaccines are introduced, the Government will also
accelerate other elements of the strategy and start to phase out badger culling in England,
as no one wants to continue the cull of a protected species indefinitely. Nevertheless, the
culling of badgers for TB control has been necessary and the epidemiological analysis
conducted by Downs
et al (2019)2, has shown that the incidence of TB breakdowns in cattle
herds in the first cull areas of Somerset and Gloucestershire has fallen substantially, by 37%
and 66% respectively, relative to matched un-culled (comparison) areas.
Badger culling will not be halted immediately – as set out in the Government’s response to
the January 2021 consultation3, no new intensive cull licences will be issued after 2022 and
follow-up supplementary badger culling will end in 2025. As set out in its response to the
Godfray review4, Government will retain badger culling as a policy option in exceptional
circumstances to address any localised flare-ups of the disease that are linked to infection
in badgers.
As part of the move towards wider badger vaccination, a number of schemes and initiatives
will be introduced. The Government will increase the ability to train and deploy vaccination
by creating local training centres and increasing the number of vaccinators from industry
and government. The Government has recently awarded funding to pilot the deployment of
large-scale vaccination by the farming community, in East Sussex. Vaccinating will also
begin in areas where intensive culling has ended.
There is no single answer to tackling the scourge of bTB, but by deploying a range of policy
interventions, we can turn continue turning the tide on this disease and achieve the long-
term objective of declaring OTF status for England by 2038.
Yours sincerely,
Simon Kraft
Ministerial Contact Unit
2
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-49957-6 3
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/bovine-tuberculosis-proposals-to-help-eradicate-disease-in-
england
4
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/a-strategy-for-achieving-bovine-tuberculosis-free-status-for-
england-2018-review