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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the impact of highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreaks in England on the health of bird populations; and what plans he has to ensure that the relevant (a) preparations and (b) arrangements are in place for an effective response to future outbreaks.

The UK is currently experiencing the largest outbreak of Avian Influenza (AI) with (as of 9 June 2022) 121 cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) confirmed in poultry & captive birds (100 cases in England, 5 cases in Wales, 10 cases in Scotland, 6 cases in Northern Ireland). All cases have been confirmed as HPAI H5N1. To date 2.6 million birds have been culled and disposed, a small proportion of overall poultry production (c.20m birds a week). Prior to this the largest number of cases was 26 cases in 2020/2021 and 13 cases in 2016/7.

There is a robust programme of surveillance in poultry and wild birds.

As part of the wild bird surveillance scheme which looks at domestic cases and those notified overseas, as of 9 June 2022, there have been 1,094 findings of avian influenza in wild birds, in 295 locations involving 50 bird species in 77 counties.

Defra’s objective in tackling any outbreak of avian influenza is to eradicate the disease as quickly as possible from the UK poultry and captive-bird population and regain UK World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) disease-free status. Defra’s approach is set out in the Notifiable Avian Disease Control Strategy for Great Britain. Swift and humane culling of birds on infected premises coupled with good biosecurity aims to prevent the amplification of avian influenza and subsequent environmental contamination and to reduce the risk of disease spread from infected premises. Current policy is in line with international standards of best practice for disease control. It reflects our experience of responding to past outbreaks of exotic animal disease.

Defra’s disease control measures seek to contain the number of animals that need to be culled, either for disease control purposes or to safeguard animal welfare. We aim to reduce adverse impacts on the rural and wider economy, the public, rural communities and the environment, while protecting public health and minimising the overall cost of any outbreak.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) leads Government action on animal disease control and has outbreak response plans in place. These include measures to contract companies to support eradication and cover such matters as the deployment of non-Government vets and experts in culling and disposal of birds. APHA also works closely with other agencies to provide additional capacity. APHA is also leading on a cross-government, cross-agency review of lessons to be learned. This will identify what went well and areas where improvements can be made to improve the effectiveness of the response to future outbreaks.