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

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to mitigate the effects of bird flu in Shetland.

Disease control is a devolved matter, and it is for the devolved administrations to assess their disease risks and respond accordingly. However, each of the administrations seeks consistent and coordinated response to disease control across Great Britain (GB) where possible. Avian influenza control measures for the three GB administrations are set out in the GB notifiable avian disease control strategy (copy also attached to this answer).

As part of the coordinated GB response to avian influenza, the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) carries out year-round avian influenza surveillance of dead wild birds submitted via public reports and warden patrols on behalf of Defra, the Scottish Government and the Welsh Government to help us understand how the disease is distributed geographically and in different types of bird. Through this surveillance, wild birds including Eider ducks, great black-backed gulls, gannets and Arctic terns have been found positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 on Shetland. The Scottish Government is working closely with APHA, NatureScot and other non-governmental organisations including the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and the British Trust for Ornithology to monitor and respond to the effect of avian influenza on wild birds on Shetland and other areas of Scotland.