Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 21
21
The APHA and Chief Veterinary Officer cited the recent example of Avian Influenza.
Conclusion
The APHA and Chief Veterinary Officer cited the recent example of Avian Influenza. This is likely to be categorised as a level three outbreak. While the APHA said that it had coped well in managing this outbreak it had to deprioritise its other work. In particular, it had meant delaying its ongoing research programme. The APHA set out that it currently has seven long-term research workstreams. It said that 36% of the milestones across these workstreams had been delayed due to challenges with capacity and the need to divert laboratory capacity to meet outbreak requirements.39 The APHA explained the vital importance of this ongoing research in horizon scanning and keeping animal diseases out of the UK.40