Scottish wild bird high pathogenicity: avian influenza response plan

3. Roles and responsibilities

3.1. Roles of Government and its agencies

The roles and responsibilities of key government departments, agencies and organisations involved in the response to an outbreak of HPAI in wild birds in Scotland are set out in Table 1.

Table 1: Roles and responsibilities of key government and other organisations involved in HPAI response in Scotland.

Scottish Government (SG)

Responsibility:

• Responsible for responding to, co-ordinating and managing, the disease response to outbreaks of exotic notifiable diseases in Scotland, supported by operational partners; including NatureScot, with regards to environmental and wildlife impacts.
• Responsible for assessing the potential impact from notifiable avian diseases to public health.
• Responsible for coordinating scientific advice and data requirements for species conservation.
• Scottish Ministers have overall responsibility for and oversight of the outbreak response. The relevant Minister will be involved in decision making, working closely with the Chief Veterinary Officer (CVO) Scotland.

Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA)

Responsibility:

• Field delivery of animal health services in Scotland is currently undertaken by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), who work on behalf of the Scottish Government, the Welsh Government and Defra (UK Government). APHA, on behalf of Scottish Ministers, are the lead operational partner responsible for:
• identifying and delivering responses to notifiable endemic and exotic diseases in animals, and aspects of surveillance for new and emerging pests and diseases;
• scientific research in areas such as bacterial, viral, prion and parasitic diseases and vaccines. They act as an international reference laboratory for many farm animal diseases;
• facilitating international trade in animals and products of animal origin (PoAO); and
• regulating the safe disposal of animal by-products, for businesses, to reduce the risk of potentially dangerous substances entering the food chain.

Animal Disease Policy Group (ADPG)

Responsibility:

• A permanent UK-wide policy forum, which provides disease control advice (e.g. the level and method of surveillance required in dead wild birds) and strategy recommendations to Ministers and other strategic decision makers. Drawing in particular on advice from relevant experts, it reviews and challenges strategic assumptions. ADPG also has an important role in ensuring that policies are coordinated (although they may be different) across the four UK administrations. Membership of ADPG includes representatives from the Scottish Government, Defra, the Welsh Government, DAERA (Northern Ireland), and all four UK CVOs.

Ornithological Experts Panel (OEP)

Responsibility:

• This group of ornithological experts, chaired by APHA, provides specific technical and scientific advice and recommendations to supporting Scottish Government and other GB administrations’ policies in response to controlling and preventing outbreaks of avian influenza.

NatureScot (NS)

Responsibility:

• Scotland’s statutory nature agency, providing advice on the conservation impacts on key species, coordination of intelligence on the scale of impact on wild birds, regulating certain activities (e.g., taking, killing of species), provision of advice to reserve managers and wider land managers.
• The Scientific Advisory Committee subgroup on Avian Influenza, which sat within NatureScot provided scientific advice to the NatureScot Board and guides practical policy decisions.

Avian Flu in Wild Birds - Scottish Task Force

Responsibility:

• A network across key public and private bodies in Scotland to ensure an efficient, effective and coordinated approach to understanding and mitigating the impact of HPAI in wild birds.
• Provides technical and advisory expertise.
• Membership includes Government and NGOs across animal and public health and welfare, wildlife policy, ornithology.
• Meets frequently at the start of an outbreak. Currently exists as a correspondence group ready to reconvene as and when required.
• Previous meeting updates can be found here.

Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA)

Responsibility:

• Scotland’s principal environmental regulatory body, with a specific HPAI focus on providing expertise and advice with respect to the disposal of waste materials.

Public Health Scotland (PHS)

Responsibility:

• Lead for the public health response in Scotland, responsible for determining and mitigating the risk to public health from HPAI.

Local Authorities (LA)

Responsibility:

• Ensure that environmental, health and safety issues are managed during the Scottish response to the HPAI response and responsible for Notifiable Avian Disease legislation enforcement.

Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA)

Responsibility:

• Ensure animal welfare practices are applied in relation to sick wild birds that are reported by the general public.

3.2. Co-ordination groups

The four UK administrations work closely together in a well-established governance structure, with many policy, scientific, expert and advisory groups feeding into the Animal Disease Policy Group (ADPG). Policy teams and delivery agencies share information and technical advice during an outbreak such as this. There are also weekly reports on findings of HPAI in wild birds in GB and an interactive map and dashboard online:

• interactive map of reported wild bird mortality and findings of avian influenza in wild birds in Great Britain
• interactive dashboard of findings of avian influenza in wild birds in Great Britain
• weekly reports of HPAI findings in wild birds in Great Britain

The ADPG provides the UK wide forum where disease control policy and strategic recommendations should be presented, reviewed, discussed, challenged and agreed. The ADPG has an important role in making sure policies are, as far as possible, consistent across the four administrations. Membership of the ADPG includes the four Chief Veterinary Officers (CVOs) from across the UK and other representatives from the four administrations, the UK Cabinet Office, and public health bodies who provide advice on zoonotic disease.

Statutory Nature Conservation Bodies (SNCBs) also work across the four administrations to support decision making and responses.

3.3. UK level forums

At the UK level there are several forums considering and advising on the response to HPAI in wild birds. Those not already included in Table 1 are:

• HPAI response (wild bird monitoring), led by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO). Technical discussion and agreement on managing the implications of HPAI in UK wild bird monitoring schemes, including ringing.
• Defra Group Avian Influenza in Wild Birds Working Group, as detailed in the Mitigation strategy for avian influenza in wild birds in England and Wales.
• Avian Influenza Wild Bird Recovery Advisory Group, as detailed in the Mitigation strategy for avian influenza in wild birds in England and Wales.
• Welsh Wild Bird Avian Influenza Strategic Response Group, as detailed in the Mitigation strategy for avian influenza in wild birds in England and Wales.
• Northern Ireland Seabird Conservation Strategy Steering Group, led by DAERA. Technical & Advisory. Government and NGOs developing strategy. Review and report on the current status of seabird populations and identify and assess their sensitivity to threats and pressures, informing management recommendations to maintain and improve conservation status.
• South Atlantic UKOTs HPAI working group. Technical & Advisory. Government and NGOs. Animal and public health, wildlife policy, ornithology.