Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department is undertaking into the study of immunity against bovine TB among (a) badgers and (b) cattle.

Research on the effect of vaccination in reducing the susceptibility to, and progression of, bovine TB in both cattle and badgers is ongoing at APHA. The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB), in conjunction with Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), launched the TB advantage trait in January 2016 which identifies bulls from dairy breeds which appear to have a reduced susceptibility to TB. Research on a similar approach in beef breeds is underway by the same groups.