Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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113. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine for an update on the TB summit; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25996/25]

Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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I raise the issue of the TB forum, and some of the soundings that have come from it which have concerned many farm organisations and people on the ground. In my part of the world and in many places we have seen increased incidence of TB and huge problems on foot of that, with farmers being locked up and not being able to sell or trade their animals. The efforts that have been made over the decades have not yielded results, and there needs to be acknowledgment of that. The eradication programme has been, shall we call it, a failure. I think it is pretty much close to that at the moment, and I would like to see what exactly we can do to turn that around if at all possible.

Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for raising a very important point, and he is not the only Deputy here this evening to raise points about bovine TB. It is a really challenging disease to control and eradicate.

In recent years, bovine TB levels have continued to deteriorate here in Ireland. Herd incidence has increased from 4.31% in 2022 to 6.04% in 2024, resulting in a 36% increase in the number of herds restricted between those two years. As of 11 May 2025, over a 12-month period, we had a herd incidence of 6.3% with more than 42,200 reactors. This disease is having an impact on our farmers and their families, not just financially but also emotionally. It is a hugely traumatic time when this hits, and the Deputy knows that from his constituents, as I know from mine, and I know from lived experience as well.

At the February meeting of the TB forum, it was agreed that all stakeholders would provide proposals on new measures for inclusion in the TB programme aimed at reducing TB levels in cattle against the backdrop of surging disease levels. At the TB forum on 26 March - the following month - all stakeholders were provided the opportunity to present proposals on draft measures to be incorporated into the TB programme to address the recent increase in disease incidence over the past two years. Following that meeting, the chair of the forum wrote to me in early April outlining discussions at the meetings.

On 8 May 2025, I held a meeting of key stakeholders to address the deteriorating TB disease levels, where discussions were held on the most effective ways to mitigate the impact of bovine TB on farm families and to reduce herd incidence and spread of the disease. At that meeting, I presented 30 potential actions underpinned by five key pillars to address the current rate of bovine TB. Those five pillars were: to support herds free of bovine TB to remain free; reduce the impact of wildlife on the spread of bovine TB; detect and eliminate bovine TB infection as early as possible in herds with a TB breakdown and avoid a future breakdown; help farmers improve all areas of farm biosecurity; and reduce the impact of known high-risk animals in spreading bovine TB.

Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister. It is stark. That 36% increase really brings home the huge difficulty currently. Wildlife control is one of the serious impacts on all of this. We have to get to grips with the reality. In some parts of the country it is deer; in other parts of the country it is badgers. There are issues there that need to be dealt with.

The vaccination programme has also been a failure in respect of that. It simply has not worked. I wonder, particularly in blackspots where we have serious outbreaks, whether we should have a mandatory blood testing of all animals rather than just the skin test that is there at the moment. Is that something that needs to be considered?

The vaccination of animals at birth is something I know has not been rolled out anywhere yet. It is something we seriously need to look at as a method of control, that we can have the BCG vaccine for all calves when they are born and that would control them into the future. I know there will be issues the Minister will raise with regard to traceability, and whether they will have the same test for a positive in that respect as if they have got the TB from wherever else. I think there can be unique tracers put on the animals at the time they are given the vaccination. Everything needs to be considered because what we have done at the moment has simply failed.

Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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I reassure the Deputy that everything that is possible is being considered and everything has been looked at. I have started an engagement with the farm organisations and key stakeholders since I was appointed in January, and since the February meeting of the TB forum I have been back and forth with them looking to get their feedback and submissions, having proposals that have come back through my chief veterinary officer, and then taking on board their reactions to those proposals. I made significant changes ahead of the TB summit I had a couple of weeks ago, and I am going to meet those stakeholders again later this week with a revised set of proposals that has taken on board their points. This has been a very deliberative process, but I have made the point that this process cannot go on forever such is the level of incidence.

I have proposals for very significant increases in investment in the wildlife programme and changes to the approach there. With respect to increases in blood testing, obviously we have the challenge with the skin test that there is only 80% efficacy, but it is very accurate. When it is right, it is right, but with the 20%, there are some that are missed. On the blood test side, that increases efficacy to over 90%. I will come back in a further supplementary.

Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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I thank the Minister. He mentioned increased funding. I believe the eradication programme cost about €75 million in 2023. There is a lot of money being spent on this, going back over the decades. We talk about the price of the children's hospital. We are into that kind of money having been spent on trying to eradicate TB in this country, and we are probably worse now than we were many decades ago.

It is time to look at this anew. I respect that the Minister said he has taken on the views of many of the farm organisations and people who were at the forum who felt the initial proposals were trying to place the farmers very much in the firing line in relation to this. There has to be a way of dealing with it in a partnership way whereby everybody can work together to try to eradicate this disease. Ultimately, that is what we need to do. We need to build a consensus across the farm organisations, the Department and everybody involved in the food industry to ensure we can continue to produce the high quality beef product in Ireland that we can market all over the world and that we can guarantee we have eradicated this disease once and for all. It will take a Trojan effort and that is why the Minister needs to continue to work with everybody to make that happen.

Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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I absolutely want to do this in partnership. I know the stress and strain of this. It goes beyond the financial but the financial is really significant. I want to provide a clear pathway for those 6,000 herds, their farmers and their families that are restricted and that have reactors. I want to give them a clear pathway to show that there is light at the end of the tunnel and a way out of this. Many of those who have multiple reactors really have a sense of hopelessness. I also want to make sure the 94% of farmers in this country who do not have it do not have to experience this. That is the partnership approach.

On the earlier point around wildlife, in my initial response I highlighted how I have very significant proposals on changing the approach to wildlife management and significant further investment in it. However, let us be really clear here. Any suggestion, and I am not saying it is the Deputy's suggestion but it can be suggested at times, that wildlife is the only problem is factually incorrect. There are three drivers of this disease among bovines. One is wildlife, the second is cattle-to-cattle transmission and the other is residual left where there is a large outbreak in a herd. If we do not tackle all three, we will leave a gap in the fence for this to continue to seep through and I cannot let that happen.