The Foot-and-Mouth Disease (Control of Vaccination) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006

PART I MOVEMENT OF SUSCEPTIBLE ANIMALS

Movement of a susceptible animal during phase 1

1.—(1) During phase 1 a person shall not move any susceptible animal within or out of a vaccination zone except for movement wholly within the same premises or movement under the authority of a licence granted by the Department.

(2) The Department shall not be grant a licence under sub-paragraph (1) except for—

(a) direct transport of animals from premises to a slaughterhouse for immediate slaughter—

(i) in the same vaccination zone, or

(ii) where there is no slaughterhouse in that vaccination zone, outside the vaccination zone, or

(b) the movement of animals from one part of premises to another part of the same premises using an intervening public highway.

(3) The Department shall not grant a licence for transport under sub-paragraph (2)(a) unless—

(a) the Department has within the previous 24 hours carried out a clinical inspection on every susceptible animal on the premises; and

(b) it is satisfied there is no suspicion of infection or contamination on the premises.

Movement of a susceptible animal during phase 2

2.—(1) During phase 2, a person shall not move any susceptible animal from or to any premises in a vaccination zone except under the authority of a licence granted by the Department.

(2) The Department shall not be grant a licence under sub-paragraph (1) for the movement of animals from any reactor premises unless—

(a) it is for the direct transport of animals to a slaughterhouse, for the purpose of immediate slaughter; and

(b) each animal which has been subjected to a diagnostic test by an inspector either for infection or for antibodies against non-structural proteins of the disease virus without a positive reaction to any such test.

(3) The Department shall not be grant a licence under sub paragraph (1) for any other movement of animals unless it is for—

(a) transport to a slaughterhouse for the purpose of immediate slaughter from premises classified under regulation 23(3) as free of disease; or

(b) movement from one part of premises to another part of the same premises using a public highway and the animal does not come into contact with another susceptible animal during movement.

(4) A licence granted under this paragraph (other than a licence for movement under sub-paragraph (3)(b)) shall require that—

(a) the animal does not come into contact with any other susceptible animal during transport or in the slaughterhouse; and

(b) the animal is accompanied during transport by a copy of the notice classifying its premises of origin under regulation 23(3), certified as a true copy by the Department.

Movement of a susceptible animal during phase 3

3.—(1) During phase 3, a person shall not move a susceptible animal within or out of a vaccination zone except for movement wholly within the same premises or movement under the authority of a licence granted by the Department.

(2) The Department shall not be grant a licence under sub-paragraph (1) for the movement of animals out of a vaccination zone except where it is for the direct transport of animals from premises classified under regulation 23(3) as free of disease to a slaughterhouse for the purposes of immediate slaughter and it includes the conditions in sub-paragraph (3).

(3) The conditions in this sub-paragraph are that—

(a) the animals do not come into contact with any other susceptible animals during transport; and

(b) the animals are accompanied during transport by a copy of the notice classifying their premises of origin under regulation 23(3), certified as a true copy by an inspector.

(4) The Department shall not be grant a licence under this paragraph for the movement of animals within a vaccination zone unless—

(a) it specifies a route to be taken which, in the opinion of the Department, ensures the animals are not exposed to infection during the journey; and either—

(i) the animals concerned are unvaccinated, and

(ii) the conditions in sub-paragraph (5) have been complied with, or

(b) the movement of animals is from one part of premises to another part of the same premises using an intervening public highway.

(5) The conditions in this sub-paragraph are that—

(a) the Department has within the previous 24 hours carried out a clinical examination on every susceptible animal on the premises of origin and has not identified signs of disease;

(b) every susceptible animal on the premises of origin has been kept there for at least 30 days;

(c) the premises of origin are not in a protection zone or a surveillance zone; and

(d) either—

(i) every animal intended for transport has been tested by an inspector for antibodies against disease after it has been on the premises of origin for a period at least as long as its incubation period with negative results, or

(ii) a serological survey pursuant to a sampling protocol suitable to detect 5% prevalence with at least 95% level of confidence has been completed on the premises of origin with negative result by an inspector.

(6) The Department shall not be grant a licence under this paragraph for the movement of the unvaccinated offspring of a vaccinated dam unless either—

(a) the Department is satisfied that each animal has undergone a serological test by an inspector for the detection of antibodies against disease with a negative result; or

(b) the licence is for movement to—

(i) premises in the vaccination zone with the same classification under regulation 23(3),

(ii) a slaughterhouse for immediate slaughter, or

(iii) other specified premises in which case sub-paragraph (7) applies; or

(c) the licence is for the movement of animals from one part of premises to another part of the same premises using a public highway.

(7) Where this sub-paragraph applies, during phase 3 a person shall not subsequently move any animal moved from those specified premises except for—

(a) movement to a slaughterhouse for immediate slaughter; or

(b) movement from one part of the premises to another part of the same premises using a public highway under the authority of a licence granted by the Department.

(8) The occupier of a slaughterhouse to which susceptible animals are transported under the authority of a licence granted under this paragraph from premises classified as free of disease under regulation 23(3) shall ensure that—

(a) before slaughter each animal undergoes an ante-mortem health check at the slaughterhouse; and

(b) at the slaughterhouse, the transported animal does not come into contact with any other animal.

Cleansing and disinfection of vehicles transporting susceptible animals

4.—(1) The person in charge of any vehicle used to move susceptible animals under the authority of a licence granted under paragraph 1, 2 or 3 shall—

(a) subject to sub-paragraph (3) ensure that it is cleansed and disinfected in accordance with Schedule 1 to the Transport of Animals (Cleansing and Disinfection) Order (Northern Ireland) 2000 and any additional requirements an inspector may by written directions impose;

(b) make a record of the time and date of each cleansing and disinfection undertaken during phase 2 or phase 3;

(c) keep the record with the vehicle at all times; and

(d) retain the record for 6 months after the last such cleansing and disinfection.

(2) Such cleansing and disinfection shall be undertaken—

(a) before loading;

(b) after unloading and before leaving the premises of destination.

(3) Such cleansing and disinfection shall also be undertaken after loading and before leaving the premises of origin in respect of the wheels and wheel arches only of the vehicle to ensure they are clean on leaving the premises.

Production of licences and unloading after licensed movements

5.—(1) This paragraph applies where any licence is granted for movement of a susceptible animal between premises under this Part, unless that licence provides otherwise.

(2) Where this paragraph applies, a person shall not unload a susceptible animal on premises to which it is moved unless that person first gives the movement licence to the occupier of those premises.

(3) Where this paragraph applies, the occupier of any premises to which a susceptible animal is moved shall—

(a) forward the movement licence without delay to the Divisional Veterinary Office and, in the case of a slaughterhouse, provide a copy to any official veterinary surgeon appointed for that slaughterhouse;

(b) retain a copy of the licence for a period of 6 months and produce it on request for inspection by an inspector;

(c) in the case of a collecting centre, ensure that sheep are marked or tagged in accordance with the directions of the Department so as to enable the identity of the collecting centre and the premises from which they were moved to be established throughout their onward movement to a slaughterhouse.