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52nd Report - Resilience to threats from animal disease

Public Accounts Committee HC 885 Published 5 November 2025
Report Status
Government responded
Conclusions & Recommendations
32 items (11 recs)
Government Response
AI assessment · 31 of 32 classified
Accepted 21
Accepted in Part 4
Acknowledged 4
Deferred 2
Government response
Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Fifth-second report from Session 2024-26 · published 19 Jan 2026
Read the government response ↗ Response on the Index
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Recommendations & Conclusions

4 items
26 Conclusion Accepted in Part

Illegal meat imports pose significant disease threat, increasing fifty-five-fold at Dover Port

Conclusion
Illegally imported meat and animal products, which have not gone through checks to confirm they are disease-free and conform to UK health standards, pose a significant and growing threat for introducing new animal diseases, such as African swine fever. Dover … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government has a plan to address illegal imports outlined in its response to the EFRA Committee, has stepped up communications to travellers, is focusing on its relationship with Dover Port Health Authority, and is actively considering increases to funding for Dover Port Health Authority. APHA will publish details of a new methodology to improve estimates of illegal meat imports in early 2026 with data analysis to follow at the end of 2026.
HM Treasury
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27 Conclusion Accepted in Part

Dover Port Health Authority performs proactive illegal meat checks only 20% of the time

Conclusion
Port Health Authorities and Border Force are responsible for seizing illegal meat and animal product imports at ports.38 The Department praised DPHA and Border Force for their work at Dover and confirmed that it has provided £9 million of funding … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government has a plan to address illegal imports outlined in its response to the EFRA Committee, has stepped up communications to travellers, is focusing on its relationship with Dover Port Health Authority, and is actively considering increases to funding for Dover Port Health Authority. APHA will publish details of a new methodology to improve estimates of illegal meat imports in early 2026 with data analysis to follow at the end of 2026.
HM Treasury
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28 Conclusion Accepted in Part

Educate travellers on illegal food import risks and implement high fines for breaches

Conclusion
The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee’s recent report on illegal meat imports also raised serious concerns about the threat from illegally imported meat. It highlighted that the authorities tasked with tackling illegal meat imports do not have the necessary … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government has a plan to address illegal imports outlined in its response to the EFRA Committee, has stepped up communications to travellers, is focusing on its relationship with Dover Port Health Authority, and is actively considering increases to funding for Dover Port Health Authority. APHA will publish details of a new methodology to improve estimates of illegal meat imports in early 2026 with data analysis to follow at the end of 2026.
HM Treasury
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30 Conclusion Accepted in Part

Veterinary Medicines Directorate published framework to address UK veterinary vaccine availability issues

Conclusion
In September 2025, the Veterinary Medicines Directorate published a Statement of Intent on UK Veterinary Vaccine Availability. This sets out a framework for future cross-sector action to address the mismatch between supply and demand for existing veterinary vaccines and facilitate … Read more
Government Response Summary
VMD's Statement of Intent outlines a strategic framework for cross-sector action. A five-year multi-stakeholder Action Plan will be published late 2026, and mitigations for urgent availability issues are being identified and actioned. Defra worked with manufacturers to expedite emergency use of a Bluetongue 3 vaccine and is supporting the avian influenza vaccine taskforce.
HM Treasury
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