Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has had recent discussions with its international counterparts on (a) coordination and (b) information sharing in the context of the circulation of highly pathogenic avian influenza across international boundaries; and whether his Department plans to develop a platform for stakeholders to (i) share resources and (ii) coordinate efforts to help tackle the disease.

Wild waterbirds of the orders Anseriformes (for example, ducks, geese, and swans) and Charadriiformes (for example, gulls, terns, and waders) are considered the natural reservoir of avian influenza viruses. Their migratory patterns and interactions with kept birds form the backbone of most established avian influenza transmission networks worldwide enabling the virus to spread across international boundaries. This includes the UK despite robust controls preventing the movement of potentially infected poultry and poultry products from infected areas.

International collaboration and knowledge exchange on global dynamics of avian influenza are facilitated through discussions between the UK Chief Veterinary Officer and representatives from Defra and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) avian influenza national and international reference laboratories, and their global counterparts through the World Organisation for Animal Health, the Quadripartite Organisations and allied projects. This includes working through the joint WOAH-FOA Scientific Network on animal influenza OFFLU. In addition, international collaboration is ongoing through specific research projects, such as KAPPA-FLU project which is focusing on understanding the connectivity and dynamics of avian influenza.

Information and guidance for bird keepers and members of the public are published and available via gov.uk/birdflu and the international research network FluGlobalNet platform founded by APHA which facilitates information and science exchange on animal influenzas.