92001E1222

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1222/01

by Glyn Ford (PSE) to the Commission

(26 April 2001)

Subject: Badgers and TB

Can the Commission indicate if it has carried out any studies into whether or not badgers spread TB?

If it has, can the Commission say what the results of such studies were?

If not, can the Commission indicate whether it has any plans to carry out any studies?

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(29 June 2001)

The Commission is aware that badgers are suspected of spreading tuberculosis. Studies into whether or not and how badgers spread tuberculosis have been carried out by the British Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF). Studies and reports (Krebs report) are published on MAFF's website (www.maff.gov.uk/animalh/tb).

The evidence so far strongly supports the view that, in the United Kingdom, badgers are a significant source of infection in cattle. It is not however possible to state quantitatively what contribution badgers make to cattle infection. Other wild life species also carry the disease, and the possibility of some contribution from these species cannot be ignored.

The Commission is currently funding FAIR-CT98-4373 Concerted Action for the setting up of a European veterinary network on diagnosis, epidemiology and research of mycobacterial diseases. One of the workshops held in the framework of this concerted action was Tuberculosis and Wildlife which took place on 23-25 March 2000 in Dublin. Several aspects of tuberculosis in badgers were addressed at this workshop. Information on this concerned action is available at http://www.ucm.es/info/venom/.

With reference to Action 29 listed in the Action plan on Food Safety(1) a task force was created in 2000 for monitoring disease eradication in the Member States. Subgroups of the Task force have been established for the three most important co-financed diseases (sheep and goat brucellosis,

bovine brucellosis and bovine tuberculosis). The objectives of these subgroups are to support Member States in their attempts to develop and implement optimal disease eradication measures. It is planned to discuss this subject in one of the next tuberculosis sub-group meetings.

(1) COM(1999) 719 final.