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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has considered introducing a centrally-funded veterinary surveillance scheme to support early detection of animal disease.

Our existing animal health surveillance arrangements are robust and we monitor for new and emerging threats to our biosecurity through our Veterinary Risk Group (VRG) and the Human and Animal Infections Risk Surveillance (HAIRS) Group. We are not considering a new centrally funded veterinary surveillance scheme at this time, outside of those for specific diseases where reasons for government intervention have been identified. However, the scope of our veterinary surveillance schemes are kept under regular review by the United Kingdom Surveillance Forum (UKSF)

Keepers, vets in practice and farmers have a crucial role in surveillance as the 'eyes and ears' of animal health and welfare, investigating herd and flock health and production problems on a daily basis across the country. The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) leads government action on animal disease. In addition to APHA’s work to monitor and respond to reports of notifiable disease in animals, APHA offers services to vets and animal keepers on behalf of Defra through a national network of Veterinary Investigation Centres (VICs), which can provide diagnostic tests, post-mortem examinations and advice from their resident veterinary investigation officers and through surveillance pathology partners, independent institutions which also offer subsidised post-mortem examinations.