Scottish Executive Response to the Foot and Mouth Disease Inquiries

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Scottish Executive Response to: Lessons to be Learned; Royal Society; and Royal Society of Edinburgh Inquiries into Foot and Mouth Disease

CHAPTER III - INDIVIDUAL RECOMMENDATIONS AND RESPONSES
3a. OVERARCHING RECOMMENDATIONS

30. The two GB-wide Inquiries provide a number of overarching principles which serve as a guide to the more detailed recommendations which flow from them. The overall thinking of the Anderson Inquiry is summed up in a set of nine lessons to be learned from the painful and complex experience of the 2001 outbreak, with a further recommendation suggesting a strategic approach should be taken. These led Dr Anderson to propose a national strategy which would have three main aims :

  • keeping out infectious agents;

  • reducing livestock vulnerability; and,

  • minimising the impact of an outbreak if it did occur.

Dr Anderson is clear, however, that while risk can be reduced by this strategy, it cannot be totally eliminated.

LL 1: Maintain vigilance through international, national and local surveillance and reconnaissance.

LL 2: Be prepared with comprehensive contingency plans, building mutual trust and confidence through training and practice.

LL 3: React with speed and certainty to an emergency or escalating crises by applying well-rehearsed crisis management procedures.

LL 4: Explain policies, plans and practices by communicating with all interested parties comprehensively, clearly and consistently in a transparent and open way.

LL 5: Respect local knowledge and delegate decisions wherever possible, without losing sight of the national strategy.

LL 6: Apply risk assessment and cost benefit analysis within an appropriate economic model.

LL 7: Use data and information management systems to conform to recognised good practice in support of intelligence gathering and decision making.

LL 8: Have a legislative framework that gives government the powers needed to respond effectively to the emerging needs of a crisis.

LL 9: Base policy decisions on best available science and ensure that the processes for providing scientific advice are widely understood and trusted.

LL 10: These Lessons should be incorporated into a national strategy designed to:

  • Keep out infectious agents of exotic disease

  • Reduce livestock vulnerability by reforms in industry practice

  • Minimise the impact of the outbreak

31. Similarly the Royal Society offers ten "key findings" which summarise its approach and guide the development of its more detailed recommendations.

RS Key Finding 1- The overall objective must be to minimise risk of disease entering the country and to prevent an outbreak from turning into an epidemic. (vii)

RS Key Finding 2 - EU and UK should keep "disease-free status without routine vaccination", though this might change, e.g. if the risk of an outbreak increased sharply, better vaccines became available, or the trading regulations associated with disease-free status were further changed, so should be kept under review. (vii)

RS Key Finding 3 - Better contingency planning, with plans debated and approved by Parliament, rehearsed each year and reviewed triennially. (vii)

RS Key Finding 4 - EU and UK must strengthen their early warning systems, through an EU risk and surveillance unit, more funding for OIE reference laboratories, better on-farm surveillance with more interaction between farmers and vets, and tightening of import controls. (vii)

RS Key Finding 5 - Routine vaccination is possible, but current technical problems and trade regulations argue against it. Nevertheless, it is clear that the long-term solution is to develop a vaccine against FMD (and other diseases such as classical swine fever) that confers life-long immunity against all strains of the virus. An international effort is needed to develop this. (vii)

RS Key Finding 6 - To prevent an outbreak turning into an epidemic, animal movements should be minimised at all times. Early warning of infection should trigger enhanced precautionary measures. (vii)

RS Key Finding 7 - Culling of IPs and DCs will remain essential, but, given recent advances in vaccine science and improved trading regulations, emergency vaccination to live should now be considered as part of the control strategy from the start of any outbreak: the Government should prepare the regulatory framework and practical arrangements (e.g. validation of tests, and the supply of vaccines) which would allow this. An exit strategy must be agreed with the main stakeholders to allow the country to return to "disease-free without vaccination" status. (viii)

RS Key Finding 8 - The first suspected case of an outbreak must be diagnosed in an approved OIE reference laboratory. Modern diagnostic tests (including pen-side tests) need to be developed to shift the burden of diagnosis onto vets on farm, and must be linked by modern telecommunications to HQ. (viii)

RS Key Finding 9 - Quantitative modelling is an essential tool: a prerequisite for this is a central database including improved data on farms, location of animals, animal movements, the characteristics of the disease and arrangements to input disease control data in a timely and assured way during an outbreak. Existing models need to be refined. (viii)

RS Key Finding 10 - A national strategy for animal disease research should be developed, through a "virtual national centre for animal disease research and surveillance" involving IAH, VLA, universities, private research institutes and publicly funded research in Scotland and Northern Ireland. (viii)

32. The Royal Society of Edinburgh adopts a slightly different approach, providing 27 focused recommendations arising from their discussions in the text, rather than giving a framework under which detailed recommendations are grouped.

Responding to Recommendations

33. The Scottish Executive finds the lessons learned and key findings invaluable as guidance for taking its work on animal health and welfare forward and accepts them fully. Most of these recommendations are points of principle and the Scottish Executive responds to them in more detail in the specific recommendations which the three Inquiries have made. In responding to them the Scottish Executive's response largely reflects Dr Anderson's 3 -pronged strategy and its key themes.

34. As such the Scottish Executive's intention is to build on the combined results of the three reports. A number of recommendations are already being taken forward and others are to be initiated. This response outlines how.

35. Whilst many of the recommendations are addressed to DEFRA, the Scottish Executive, as the responsible authority for all Animal Health issues in Scotland, is responding here to all those relevant to the situation in Scotland and the wider animal health agenda. Most of the areas identified for DEFRA to take forward are either devolved or have a significant impact on the management of a devolved policy area. Many of the recommendations cannot, however, be taken forward by Scotland alone but the majority are either led by the Scottish Executive or with significant Scottish Executive input and the response explains how the Scottish Executive will be working with other UK Rural Affairs Departments to see them implemented.

Page updated: Wednesday, September 14, 2005