Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)

As part of the work of the TB forum, which has done extensive work down the years, a dedicated financial working group was established to review the financial modelling of various elements of the bovine TB eradication programme. Agreement was reached within the group in the past two years and there were rate enhancements to the income supplements scheme, the hardship grant and the depopulation grant, as well as enhanced ceilings for selected animals being removed as part of the on-farm market valuation scheme. In addition, the financial working group also expanded the eligibility criteria under the income supplement and hardship grant schemes.

The figures outlined by the Deputy are very stark, though. It is true that the new action plan will, if it is working, see an increase in the number of reactors next year, not necessarily the number of herds impacted. We have too many residual reactors going undetected and seeding the disease by being sold on to other farms. With increased gamma interferon testing - the blood testing - layered on in high-risk herds, we will identify more of those reactors earlier. The modelling predicts 62,000 reactors next year. That is why we need €157 million to address that. In two years' time, the reactor levels should plateau and we should see them coming down.

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