BVA outlines proposals for EU-UK vet agreement and solutions to secure vet medicines access in Northern Ireland

The British Veterinary Association (BVA) has published two policy positions, one outlining what should be included in any EU – UK veterinary agreement and the other proposing solutions and mitigations to secure future access to veterinary medicines in Northern Ireland, which is becoming increasingly urgent as the post-Brexit grace period extension concludes at the end of the year.

Speaking at BVA’s annual London Dinner last week, Daniel Zeichner MP, Minister of State at the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs reaffirmed the Government’s manifesto commitment to an EU-UK veterinary agreement. However, it is critical that the Government gets the detail right to ensure its success, and moves quickly.

The current lack of a veterinary agreement and the checks imposed following Brexit on all goods of animal origin and live animals has already had a considerable detrimental impact on animal health and welfare, disease surveillance and data sharing. The veterinary profession has also been put under significant pressure since the introduction of health certifications and physical checks, issuing about one million Export Health Certificates (EHCs) since the checks came into force. The UK has also lost access to key databases to monitor disease outbreaks and protect the UK’s biosecurity.

In the long-term, BVA suggests an EU-UK veterinary agreement based on the principle of dynamic alignment - where parties to a trade agreement maintain equivalent regulatory standards to each other - such as the EU-Switzerland agreement, but with enough flexibility to diverge in legislation. This could help the UK to maintain high standards of biosecurity, animal health and welfare as well as facilitating trade and reducing the pressure on the veterinary workforce.

A veterinary agreement with the EU is also the best long-term solution to resolve the issue of future access to veterinary medicines in Northern Ireland, but this is unlikely to be secured before the extended grace period ends in December 2025. Therefore, BVA has proposed short-term solutions and mitigations to resolve the issue while the agreement negotiations continue:

Interim proposals for Northern Ireland Medicines:

• Re-routing through the ROI: If pharmaceutical companies re-route veterinary medicines destined for Northern Ireland through Dublin directly from their place of manufacture in the EU instead of via Great Britain, they will not need to be relabeled with a new Marketing Authorisation Holder (MAH) or re-batch tested. Some pharmaceutical companies have already started doing this.
• Applying exceptions to allow all or at least some veterinary medicines that were aligned with regulation before Brexit to continue to be supplied to Northern Ireland without having to have the MAH location changed or re-batch tested, with newly licensed veterinary medicines then adhering to EU rules.
• Developing a Special Import Certificate (SIC) scheme for Northern Ireland: This will allow Northern Ireland to import products from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) that are currently used, such as the botulism vaccine, but also any products from GB that it may need.

British Veterinary Association President Elizabeth Mullineaux said: “A veterinary agreement with the EU could have an incredibly positive impact on so many different areas of concern, but in particular, could finally lead to a permanent resolution to the long-standing question of future access to vital veterinary medicines in Northern Ireland. Without a solution, there are serious implications not only for animal health and welfare, but also for public health. We urge the Government to recognise the seriousness of the situation, to engage with the veterinary profession, and to carefully consider the solutions and mitigations we have set out to avoid potentially devastating consequences.”