Welsh government announces new TB eradication targets
The interim targets cover six-year periods and will be set for each TB region.
The Welsh government has announced new TB eradication targets to help the country become officially TB free.
The interim targets cover six-year periods and will be set for each TB region. These will specify overall reductions in herd incidence and the transfer of Spatial Units from higher incidence areas to lower incidence areas.
The means the Low TB areas will expand over time to cover land classified as Intermediate. High TB Areas will shrink as their Spatial Units are reclassified to the immediate areas.
At the end of each six-year period, the government will assess the progress and set milestones for the following period.
Cabinet secretary Lesley Griffiths said: “These milestones stress the urgency of the task at hand and reflect my ambition to see important progress in each region during each period. They will help convey the need for immediate action, to focus minds and to drive the progress necessary to achieve our collective goals.”
She continued: “Meeting our targets will not be easy. They are intended to be ambitious and to stretch us. Achieving them will require the cooperation and dedication of everyone involved.
“I am challenging us all, in Government, APHA, industry and our veterinary colleagues, to commit everything to ensure we eradicate this dreadful disease as soon as possible.”
With Strangles Awareness Week just around the corner (5-11 May), vets are being encouraged to share a survey about the disease with their horse-owning clients.
