I thank the Chairman and members for their observations and consideration of the matter of TB and bovine brucellosis eradication and the efforts over the years. In some ways it has been an unhappy experience because we have sought for five decades to eradicate tuberculosis and brucellosis from the animal herd and have still not achieved our target of full eradication.
On the other hand, we have reduced the incidence to 0.1% and 0.5%, which is critically important to Ireland because we are a major exporting nation and export food to more than 60 countries worldwide. That low incidence allows us to continue to trade with and access some of the most sensitive markets worldwide.
We are staying within the limits under EU regulations and directives, but it is a costly scheme. It costs €67 million per annum, but if other diseases, especially BSE, are taken into account, along with the collection of fallen and casualty animals, the rendering of risk material and the disposal of meat and bonemeal, the cost of containing animal diseases rockets to €216 million. Last year was a special year and was particularly difficult because we were obliged to establish a destruct scheme which cost a couple of hundred million euro.
There has been considerable Exchequer support, and an extra €10 million is being sought today. That is a relatively small percentage of the €216 million, but it is a burden on farmers. Compensation costs alone are about €45 million and they increased sharply following the introduction of on-farm valuation. Many farmers complained that the reactor grant was inadequate, so we introduced on-farm valuation and compensation costs increased enormously as a result. Some people would not consider it unreasonable that farmers would sign up to this scheme and make a reasonable contribution to it.
The Chairman referred to marts and some of the restrictions we instituted because of the phenomenon of cattle doing a bed and breakfast at three, four or five marts. There was no need for that and, if there is a small margin on cattle, as we are told, or sheep for that matter, I do not know how there is a margin for five or six people from the same animal. I accept Deputy Upton's comment that if society and farmers in particular attached the same degree of seriousness to bio-security in their farm operations as they did to foot and mouth disease, then with a more determined effort over a short sharp period, we probably would have better results.
That said, brucellosis is an extremely infectious and contagious disease, as is TB. There is always a significant amount to be learned about them. We all know people in our localities who have had breakdowns despite the fact that they neither bought animals nor traded in them. Yet, they have had a breakdown. Experts have focused, not alone in Ireland but in other EU countries, on wildlife and the extent to which wildlife contributes to the problem. Badgers have been focused on and, when they have been tested, the average level of TB among badgers in Ireland was found to be 20%. That is a huge level of infectivity in any species and is a problem for this species. Badgers with TB have a lingering, slow death as a result. I realise there are concerns about taking out some badgers, the assessment of the extent of the problem, and about animal welfare. However, this is an animal welfare issue because of the level of infectivity and the need to capture the animals. Wire snares are not used; instead, the most humane loop system is used in harmony with the Bern convention. No matter what method is used, these animals must be caught, but it is a humane system. The loops are checked morning and evening and are taken down at weekends so that an animal would not be tied up over an extended period.
However, it is necessary to have this kind of research carried out and the example of east County Offaly has been cited. There were dramatic improvements in the situation in that area where a large number of badgers were taken out. It is traumatic for farmers who have been farming their herds diligently when they abruptly have a breakdown in their herd and that can be traced to a badger sett on the farm or on a neighbouring farm, or perhaps to deer coming in from a wildlife area.
There are many aspects to this and we must be serious about it or it will take a great deal longer to tackle. I introduced a number of measures in 1998 and 1999, such as a pre-movement test. Those additional measures were not warmly welcomed and were barely accepted by the farming community because it was additional pressure and, as it is sometimes called, additional bureaucracy. However, it is showing results and there has been a significant reduction in the number of outbreaks among animals. I hope that continuing with this aggressive attitude to both diseases will see considerable progress. I do not know whether total eradication can be achieved. As Deputy Timmins mentioned, we might have heard the same sort of thing 20 years ago at a meeting such as this. We are going in the right direction and the figures show that we have made considerable progress over recent years. Foot and mouth disease inculcated a more serious approach to animal disease and imposed considerable restrictions on the movement of animals, and those two results have helped us considerably. Members will know that the marts system has tightened up considerably also.
Deputy Michael Moynihan asked whether the technology had changed since the 1950s and whether the vaccine had changed. The vaccine changed about 1988 from Rotterdam tuberculin to Lillstadt tuberculin and this is tested for potency each year. The expert advice to me is that this is the best available and adequate for our requirements.
On the operation of the schemes, Deputy Tom Hayes asked about measures regarding brucellosis and tuberculosis. We have tightened up the existing programme, including on pre-movement for marts. The badger programme is in place and I mentioned the vaccine in that regard. Our experts are working on the vaccine and it will be of considerable benefit to badgers. If we can reduce the 20% figure for infected badgers it would reduce the suffering in the badger population and it would reduce the potential for infectivity in the bovine herd. With regard to deer, there is a much lower level of infectivity and I am told that it is less than 3% for wild deer. That is a significant level but much lower than the badger problem.
Deputy Ferris and Senator Callanan asked about our efforts with regard to Northern Ireland. There is regular liaison, especially regarding animal health. Liaison on that subject is not seen as a predatory activity and there is considerable goodwill with regard to tackling animal disease, and a possibility of having an all-Ireland attitude to that. We are making considerable progress in this regard and there are working groups in operation. There is a commitment that various diseases, including TB and brucellosis, will be addressed on an all-island basis. This was helped, paradoxically, by the foot and mouth disease outbreak and there has been a close working relationship between the two jurisdictions. There was success in avoiding the worst aspects of the disease on the island of Ireland compared to the situation in Britain.
There is no evidence of a spread of disease across the Border or, at the least, my Department can find no such evidence. There is very little brucellosis in counties Louth, Monaghan and Donegal while outbreaks in Cavan and Leitrim have been traced to local incidents and bed and breakfast type operations. TB levels are falling in counties Cavan, Monaghan, Louth and Donegal but we are not complacent. The Border is porous in many ways and we must stick to an all-island strategy to deal with animal health. This will mean that Northern Ireland will have to secure access through the ports and airports there. That creates difficulties because it is helpful to Northern Ireland to be one trading area for beef because there is such demand for it in Britain.
With regard to disease measures put in place in the late 1990s, the pre-movement test was introduced for brucellosis as well as the annual blood testing of all eligible animals, and monthly testing for milk and dairy suppliers. There was a monitoring scheme at meat plants, selective use of skin tests and a more aggressive depopulation policy. The rest period before repopulation was also extended in selected areas. We hope information technology and computerised systems will also be helpful. There is now a good traceability system and that is more advanced, and similar to having passports for animals when they are born. There is now a payment system on premia and we want to marry the two systems with the district veterinary office because the premia payment and the passport system are on one tier while the district veterinary offices are on another. We have a system in place that will be introduced in the first half of next year. At the moment one must go around looking for files in the DVO office. If one has IT and modern technology it should be used to the fullest extent. I hope we can do that by the middle of 2003, but I am awaiting full co-operation from the veterinary profession.
Deputy Timmins and others referred to the fact that this is a bad year for farming, and so it is. It is not getting any better, it is getting colder and we have had an extraordinarily high level of rainfall. However, it is very difficult, if at all possible, to find a good time to introduce a levy. It does not give us any great pleasure to introduce a levy, but under the circumstances we do not have a choice. We spend a fair amount of time in Government looking at ways to ensure that the least well-off get a reasonably fair crack of the whip, having regard to the fact that revenues were down by €1.3 billion. We wanted to give the old age pensioners their €10 and wanted to be as helpful as possible to other sectors. I hope we were as fair as possible. This levy to raise an additional €10 million is reasonable under the circumstances.
Incomes are down this year, and there is no doubt it is a difficult year, but incomes were up in 2001 and the year before, by a total of 39% over the two years. In fairness to everybody, 2001 was an extremely difficult year for many sectors of the economy. Consider our tourism industry, which is important in rural areas as well as elsewhere. I went on many television stations, including Sky, CNN, BBC and ITV, and asked people from other countries not to come to Ireland. They were not welcome here because the risk of them bringing in some contamination was too great. Bed and breakfast establishments, farm guest houses, visitor centres and so on were in a desperate state. I recall Muckross House in Killarney, County Kerry and similar places, contacting me.
They nevertheless did their bit and put out the disinfectant mats and so on. They got no respite or compensation, whereas the farming community, despite all the problems, had a good year and was well supported. In the present situation, it is not unreasonable to ask for a further €10 million for disease containment, on which 90% of the money spent comes from the general tax take.
Deputy Upton asked about the distribution of brucellosis throughout the country. There are black spots in different areas and from time to time we get an upsurge in a particular area. Much of it can be traced to over-trafficking in animals through various marts, holding centres and that type of thing, where there is too much contact with animals and diseases spread. We are trying to eliminate that through the restrictions we have imposed following the foot and mouth disease crisis, and that has contributed to our relative success in recent years.
Deputy Sargent asked about research into vaccination. That is being undertaken and a new vaccine was introduced in 1988, which experts tell me is adequate. There is a substantial veterinary section in my Department and it conducts on-going research. I invite colleagues from time to time to meet these people, and any time anybody wants to visit the Department he or she will be very welcome. In fact, if colleagues visit next week we might have a little drop of something in a bottle as well for when they arrive.
Henshaws was raised and a very reasoned and impassioned case was made by Deputy Crawford and by the Chairman. I have said many times in public and in the Dáil that I do not favour the general taxpayer coming to the rescue of private operators who go into liquidation or go bankrupt because that would allow private operators to take risks way beyond the call of duty if they thought the good old taxpayers would come in and rescue them at any given time. I have great objection to all of this. However, the case of Henshaws is a little bit different to this. The background was that the cattle were brought in under the disease eradication programmes so I am sympathetic to the position of the farmers there. I do not want undue hardship to be caused to individual farmers. There is a legal problem, though, and I have asked for advice from the Attorney General's office. I am seeking to deal with the matter in a sympathetic way, and if I can find a formula that is not in conflict with the liquidation process and the law, I will try to be helpful.
The development of a vaccination for wildlife is on-going. My understanding is that delivery of this vaccine will be by way of bait, similar to the method that was used to eradicate rabies from wildlife in continental Europe. The relevant authorities have been consulted and we are awaiting advice from the various authorities in relation to the consequences.
Deputy Upton asked me about the situation in the EU. It is difficult to obtain comparable data across the EU. Many of the northern European states eradicated TB many decades ago, before the advent of intensive farming and large scale movement. The foot and mouth disease problem showed us that - although we are told that many of these animals were almost worthless - they were travelling from Britain across to Northern Ireland, then into the Republic, then on to France and then on to maybe the Netherlands. There is a huge amount of trafficking in and movement of animals from one location to another and from one farmer to another. The whole operation is more intensive also. Southern member states have fairly significant levels of TB and brucellosis all the time. TB and brucellosis levels are higher in Northern Ireland than they are here. In Britain, reactor numbers and the number of areas involved are both increasing.
It is somewhat more difficult to obtain other comparable figures. New Zealand also has a problem with TB and wildlilfe. It has a high incidence of the disease and possums are posing a problem similar to that posed by badgers in Ireland. This problem relates to bovine herds internationally, apart from those in some northern hemisphere countries in which eradication had been successful prior to intensive farming.
I thank the Chairman and Members for their contributions to this meeting. I will be glad to facilitate any Member who may wish to speak to experts from my Department in greater detail on the more technical aspects with regard to vaccines and other relevant issues.
