Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that meat and poultry imported from overseas has been raised in compliance with UK guidelines on the use of antibiotics in farming; what tests are carried out on imported meat and poultry; and whether the results of such tests are published.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
Imported products of animal origin are monitored based on the nature of the products and the risk they represent, as required by Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2130, which is part of EU retained law.
The UK Government is committed to working with global partners to improve standards on antimicrobial resistance (AMR), for example through participation in the Codex Alimentarius AMR Task Force revision of the “Code of Practice to Minimize and Contain Foodborne Antimicrobial Resistance”, as well as by promoting global ‘one health’ action on AMR through our commitments under the UK National Action Plan for AMR 2019-24.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment have they made of the UK's performance in addressing antimicrobial resistance in animals compared to (1) the 27 Member States of the EU, and (2) other developed economies.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
There is considerable variation in levels and trends of antimicrobial resistance between the UK and European Member States and other global partners, for example the USA, Canada and Japan. The UK is among those countries which have made most progress in addressing antimicrobial resistance in bacteria from animals in recent years.
In terms of comparing antibiotic sales between countries, the latest published data in the European Surveillance of Veterinary Antimicrobial Consumption project, which compared antimicrobial sales data for food producing animals across EEA countries and Switzerland for 2017 (published Oct 2019), shows that in 2017 the UK had the fifth lowest level of antibiotic consumption in food-producing animals (32.5 mg/kg) of the 31 European countries reporting this data (only Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Iceland are lower). This project is available here: https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/documents/report/sales-veterinary-antimicrobial-agents-31-european-countries-2017_en.pdf The US, Canada and Japan also publish antibiotic sales data: Canada published an overall sales figure for 2016 of 150mg/kg, which was an 18% reduction on their 2015 sales. USA and Japan do not report in mg/kg but do publish data on tonnes of antibiotic active ingredient used for food producing animals. The USA reported a reduction of 38% between 2015 and 2018 whereas Japan showed an increase of 2.8% between 2013 and 2016.
We continue to be committed to working with livestock sectors to reduce inappropriate antibiotic use and have achieved a 53% reduction in sales of antibiotics for food-producing animals between 2013 and 2018. We are also committed to working alongside our global partners to promote data sharing and responsible antibiotic use.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the UK's progress in reducing the human consumption of veterinary antimicrobials; how this progress compares with that of other European countries; and whether the collection of data at farm level is adequate.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Government is committed to reducing unnecessary use of antibiotics in animals. Over the last five years (2014-18) our approach has seen a 53% decrease in antibiotic sales for farmed animals, including a drop of two thirds in those antibiotics most critically important for human health, and in 2017 the UK had the fifth lowest level of antibiotic consumption in food-producing animals of the 31 European countries reporting these data. This has been achieved through working collaboratively with vets and farmers, most notably through the Targets Task Force chaired by the Responsible Use of Medicines in Agriculture Alliance to implement the goals of the UK National Action Plan, recognising that good farm management, biosecurity, and animal husbandry systems are crucial to minimise the occurrence of disease and therefore the need for antibiotics.
The UK’s sales and surveillance data is published in our annual Veterinary Annual Sales and Surveillance report and presents antibiotic usage data from ten sectors including the pig, poultry and fish industries. This data is collected on a voluntary basis by the livestock sectors and shared with the Veterinary Medicines Directorate; this demonstrates a strong willingness to share data openly and UK farming sectors are continuing to refine and develop new systems for collecting, and reporting on, antibiotic usage.
Data on human consumption of antimicrobials is monitored and published annually by Public Health England in its English Surveillance Programme for Antimicrobial Utilisation and Resistance[1] report.
[1] The English Surveillance Programme for Antimicrobial Utilisation and Resistance (ESPAUR), run by Public Health England, develops and maintains robust surveillance systems for monitoring and reporting trends in antimicrobial use and to develop systems to optimise antimicrobial prescribing across healthcare settings. The ESPAUR report 2018 to 2019 can be viewed here:
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask Her Majesty's Government where they intend to establish border control posts in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Lord Gardiner of Kimble
The Northern Ireland Protocol was designed as a practical solution to avoiding a hard border on the island of Ireland, whilst ensuring that the UK, including Northern Ireland, could leave the EU as a whole. In implementing the Protocol, the Government’s top priority remains protecting Northern Ireland’s place in our United Kingdom, and preserving the huge gains from the peace process and the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement.
Whilst the Protocol is in force, both the UK and EU must respect and abide by the legal obligations it contains, as well as our other international law obligations.
The Protocol will require changes to provide for agrifood checks and assurance as goods move into Northern Ireland, building on the provisions that already exist to support the Single Epidemiological Unit on the island of Ireland. This will include a need for agrifood goods from Great Britain to enter Northern Ireland via a Border Control Post (BCP), designated for the type of goods it will handle.
As set out in the Command Paper on The UK’s Approach to the Northern Ireland Protocol published on 20 May, the Government is taking forward this work with the Northern Ireland Executive. We have already confirmed that existing BCP designations at Belfast Port, Belfast International Airport, Belfast City Airport and Warrenpoint Port will be maintained.
At a minimum we expect to expand the categories of commodities that can be handled at Belfast Port, and to designate Larne Port for live animal imports. Checks are already currently carried out at Larne on all livestock entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain, but the existing facility does not currently have formal EU approval. Subject to further work with the Northern Ireland Executive and delivery partners, further designations may also be required at other existing sites. There will be no construction at points of entry where no plant or animal health checks are currently carried out.