What has been announced?
The announcement from Welsh Government covers three periods, and they confirm that:
Between 12 June – 19 June:
- The policy and exemptions that are in place today related to moving animals from the current RZ (i.e. the one in place across parts of England) remain the same until 19th June. The exemptions currently in place effectively mean that premovement testing is only required for breeding stock moving out of the current RZ but every animal moved must have a specific licence. More information is available on GOV.UK
Between 20 June – 1 July:
- Temperatures have risen and the exemptions in place will cease. This means all stock moving out of the RZ to live in Wales will need a movement licence issued APHA which confirms that the animals have:
- a valid pre-movement test, or
- vaccination with the Boehringer Bultavo-3 vaccine (for cattle only)
- have no clinical signs of illness
From 1 July 2025:
- From 1 July 2025 any susceptible animals (ruminants or camelids including cattle, sheep, goats, deer, llamas and alpacas) moving from a Bluetongue Restricted Zone (i.e. England) to Wales to live will require a specific movement licence and negative premovement test.
- Vaccinated cattle that have completed treatment with Boehringer 'Bultavo-3' vaccine and have no clinical signs of illness can move from a Restricted Zone to Wales without a pre-movement test. Completed treatment means both doses of the vaccine were administered and at least 21 days have elapsed since the second vaccine dose.
- No BTV-3 vaccine products currently meet the requirements for protecting sheep from BTV-3 to allow them to move out of the restricted zone, and all sheep must be pre-movement tested to move.
- Keepers must apply for a movement licence regardless of whether a pre-movement test or vaccination is being used.
- The pre-movement test must be arranged and paid for privately. Once Defra moves England to become a whole country RZ, the free testing that is currently available will end.
- We are waiting for confirmation on how long the pre-movement test is valid for, currently this is 10 days but this time may shorten as temperatures warm up and we enter the active midge season.
- Welsh Government has committed to keeping this policy under review based on the evidence "on the ground" in Wales and the rest of GB. This policy may therefore be reviewed earlier but Welsh Government say that “whatever the future holds, it will be reviewed in Autumn”.
NFU Cymru response
In response to the Written Statement from the Deputy First Minister, NFU Cymru President Aled Jones said: “We recognise that the decision over whether or not to follow the whole-country action set to be taken in England from the 1 July has been a difficult one for the Deputy First Minister, balancing the impact of the disease on livestock and productivity on-farm against the cost to industry of delivering and complying with the controls announced today.
“There are many unknows about how BTV-3 could impact our herds and flocks across Wales and Welsh farmers are extremely worried about the threat of the spread of the disease. However, we have significant concerns about the lack of resources and capacity within the laboratories and APHA (Animal and Plant Health Agency) to deliver against the potential demand for each and every animal to be tested and licensed, given the significant amount of stock that move across the border from England to Wales for management, welfare and trading purposes. We have raised these concerns directly with Welsh Government and continue to seek assurances that this policy can practically be delivered. We understand that going forward the costs of testing will be borne by the farmer, which will cause a huge increase to the cost of trading.
Entering an extremely important time of the year
“Welsh Government has committed to keeping their decision under review. We are about to enter an extremely important time of the year in the farming calendar, with many farmers looking to trade breeding stock and store stock ahead of the autumn and winter months. For many herds and flocks, the opportunity to trade breeding stock, both those looking to purchase or sell stock, only comes once a year and this trade is critical. Not only because these sales are an important part of a farm’s annual cash flow but also because Welsh farmers need to be able to purchase the right animals for their businesses to enable them to be productive, profitable and to deliver on market and contractual demands. Welsh Government must ensure that a sustainable solution is found as soon as possible that negates the need for excessive testing and licencing, balancing the impact of the disease against the potential huge costs of industry delivering and complying with the controls announced today.
“NFU Cymru believes the best method for farmers to protect their herds and flocks from infection is via vaccination. We support a campaign to promote vaccine use and facilitate the maximum number of doses being available on Welsh farms as quickly as possible. We would urge all farmers to speak to their vets to discuss a vaccination plan for their farm.”
Notifiable disease
Bluetongue is a notifiable animal disease. All livestock keepers are urged to remain vigilant and any suspicion of bluetongue must be reported immediately to APHA on 0300 303 8268.
