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 potential implications for his policies of the outbreak of TB in Northern Irish farms.

Policy on bovine tuberculosis (TB) is devolved to Governments in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Northern Ireland Administration is able to adopt specific animal health policies in certain cases which are different from the other UK Administrations, in order to achieve the aim of bovine TB eradication in Northern Ireland.

Defra liaises closely with all three devolved administrations, including Northern Ireland, on matters of common interest. It is important that all four administrations can learn from our collective experiences, and we have effective arrangements in place to make sure that happens.