Avian Influenza: Vaccination

(asked on 14th December 2021) - View Source

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 plans to vaccinate wild bird populations against avian flu.


Answered by
Jo Churchill Portrait
Jo Churchill
Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This question was answered on 22nd December 2021

Defra has no plans to vaccinate the wild bird population against avian influenza.

Defra’s policy on vaccination is set out in the Notifiable Avian Disease Control Strategy for Great Britain and in separate guidance on GOV.UK. Outside of zoos, the vaccination of birds as an immediate disease control response is not currently permitted. High standards of biosecurity, separation of poultry and other captive birds from wild birds, and careful surveillance for signs of disease remain the most effective means of controlling avian influenza.

In practice, existing vaccines can only be administered via injection. This precludes any widespread use in wild birds.

While vaccination can help to reduce mortality, it is likely that some vaccinated birds would still be capable of transmitting avian influenza if they became infected. This would increase the time taken to detect and eradicate the virus.

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