Debate contribution: Bovine Tuberculosis

Debate contribution by Miss Michelle McIlveen on 27 April 2026.

MLA

Miss Michelle McIlveen

Party at the time

Democratic Unionist Party

Date

27 April 2026

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

Bovine Tuberculosis

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5508713

Read the official Assembly record

Text

Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. I thank the Members who tabled the motion. As we have heard, bovine TB is a serious and persistent challenge. It has implications for public health and animal welfare and, perhaps more significantly, for the livelihoods and well-being of our farming families. While we recognise the problem, we also need to ensure that the Assembly is grounded in the realities that are facing Northern Ireland and that a response is shaped by the best available evidence. The motion references the increase in human TB cases. We know from the Public Health Agency that there were 86 notified cases in 2024. However, it is important to place on record that the risk from bovine TB remains very low, with just three cases identified in Northern Ireland. That context matters, and it allows us to respond proportionately whilst still taking the issue seriously. While the direct public health risk may be low, the impact on our farming community is profound and increasing. Members will be aware of the recent report from the Andersons Centre, commissioned by industry bodies including the Ulster Farmers' Union, in which the true scale of the burden that is being placed on the farming community as a result of bovine TB is laid bare. The report is not just timely with regard to this debate but provides us with invaluable information to understand the true cost of bovine TB, including on the mental health of our farmers. What we learn is that there is an annual economic cost of approximately £156 million to Northern Ireland's agriculture sector. Importantly, however, and a fact before now unknown, is that over £96 million of that figure is borne directly by farmers themselves through indirect costs. For every £1 that it costs the Government, it costs farmers over £1·60. What is particularly striking is that over half those costs arise even in herds that have never experienced a TB breakdown. The cost of bovine TB is a burden that is being carried across the entire sector, not just by a small number of farms. The Andersons Centre report is clear that bovine TB is not a short-term or isolated issue. Rather, it is a structural constraint on livestock farming in Northern Ireland. It is embedded across the sector, cumulative in its impact and acts as a persistent drag on farm profitability, efficiency and sustainability. Those are not abstract costs; they include production losses, additional labour demands, increased biosecurity costs, cash-flow pressures and environmental inefficiencies. They are felt day-in, day-out by farmers who are already working long hours in a challenging economic climate. Behind every statistic is a real farm family who are dealing with uncertainty. Individuals are feeling the stress and emotional strain every day. Herds that have been built up over generations are being placed at risk. Livelihoods are at risk, and farms that have been handed down from generation to generation are facing ruin. There is an inescapable and significant emotional toll. The report highlights stress, anxiety and even social withdrawal as common experiences during TB breakdowns. Those pressures persist long after restrictions are lifted. They mean that farmers no longer want to farm and the next generation looks elsewhere. Some 50·9% of farmers state that they have considered leaving farming because of bovine TB. That is over half our farmers. The impact does not stop at the farm gate. Local marts feel it when throughput declines, supply chains are disrupted and export opportunities are constrained. Our TB status limits access to certain international markets, placing Northern Ireland at a competitive disadvantage compared with other regions. When we talk about bovine TB, we are talking not just about an outbreak on a farm here and there but about a structural issue that affects the entire agri-food economy. It affects rural employment, food production and our ability to compete globally. Why, after all this time and all the rural policy, are we still here? In its 2018 report, the Northern Ireland Audit Office (NIAO) made it clear that, despite significant public expenditure, the eradication programme has not delivered the desired outcome. The cycle of testing, removing and compensating for animals has not succeeded in eradicating the disease. Continuing with the same approach will not change that. Of course, compensation, while necessary, addresses only a fraction of the problem. There are farmers who do not recognise it as compensation. It reflects the value of animals lost, but it does not cover productivity losses, the disruption to work on the farm or the ongoing financial strain on the business. We need to move beyond simply managing the consequences of bovine TB and, instead, focus on tackling the underlying drivers of disease persistence. To do that, we need to introduce a truly comprehensive disease eradication strategy. We welcome the work of the TB partnership group and the publication of its eradication blueprint, but having a blueprint is not enough. It must be implemented in full and with urgency. To do that, the Department needs to address all three pillars: cattle, people and wildlife. That unavoidably includes a wildlife intervention. We know that that is not a straightforward issue. No one in the Chamber takes it lightly. Badgers are an iconic part of our countryside, and there are strong views on all sides. In saying that, however, we cannot ignore the growing body of scientific evidence. Peer-reviewed research, including the 2024 analysis by Birch and colleagues, shows that, where a comprehensive package of measures that includes wildlife intervention, enhanced testing and strengthened biosecurity is implemented, TB incidence reduces significantly over time. Reductions of up to 56% have been seen by the fourth year. The evidence also shows that progress is not immediate but builds over time. That reinforces the need for a sustained, balanced and integrated approach if we are serious about eradication. That is the approach that the DUP has consistently supported. There is a need for robust, evidence-based policies, including targeted wildlife intervention alongside a long-term ambition to move towards vaccination where possible. We also recognise the allocation of funding through the Shared Island initiative and the intention behind the regionalisation pilot. Cooperation can, of course, play a role. However, it is important that we listen carefully to the concerns raised by the Ulster Farmers' Union, which has warned that the chosen pilot area is not representative of the wider Northern Ireland TB picture. If the data that we gather is not representative, the conclusions that we draw will be fundamentally flawed. That risks setting policy back rather than moving it forward. Farmers want solutions that work in the real conditions that they face every day. They want us to grasp that this is urgent. Across Northern Ireland, herd breakdowns remain far too high. In many constituencies, they are a regular and disruptive reality. Each breakdown brings financial strain, operational disruption and emotional stress.

Farmers are playing their part by complying with testing regimes, investing in biosecurity and adapting to changing requirements. They now need decisive action from the Department that matches their commitment. Our amendment reflects that reality. It recognises the full economic burden of bovine TB, acknowledges who is bearing that burden, highlights legitimate concerns about current approaches and calls clearly for immediate, evidence-based action, including wildlife intervention.

Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results has been described as the definition of insanity. If we keep doing the things that we have been doing, costs will continue to rise. The burden will grow, and, unless decisive action is taken, our farmers will continue to pay the price financially, emotionally and socially. If we are serious about eradicating bovine TB, we must be willing to act. The action that we take must be guided by evidence and be focused on outcomes. We must be committed to delivering real change. At present, we are failing to deliver for our farmers and our rural communities. I commend the amendment to the House.

1,327 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 15:32 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

Disagree with this assessment?

Classifications can be challenged. A person reads every challenge, and any change is recorded publicly above with its reason.

Challenge this classification