Thank you, Minister, for your statement, although, again, I think there is a groundhog day feel to all of this, really. We've had similar statements at regular intervals over the years and, regrettably, with the same trend in terms of managing to get on top of this disease. It feels a little bit as if you're deflecting some of the Government's failings onto farmers as well, because you say that farmers should source stock more carefully—well, do you not think that they're responsible enough in that respect? You say that you call on low-TB-area farms to do all they can to keep bovine TB out. Surely you're not suggesting that they're not already doing as much as they could, because I don't know of any farmer who'd like to find themselves in this position, and, in fact, if you expect farmers to do everything they possibly can, then I think it's only fair that farmers expect the Welsh Government to do everything it possibly can as well to tackle this horrible disease, and that, of course, means using every tool that's available to you. Since the introduction of the individual action plans—or the bespoke action plans—we've seen, I think, licences issued on just three farms across the whole of Wales with just five badgers being removed. Now, that's in contrast, of course, to over 11,000 cattle that have been slaughtered. We've already been reminded that that represents a 12 per cent increase in the number of cattle being slaughtered. In some individual regions it's even higher, actually, and that, I think, tells us a lot about what we need to know in relation to how successful the Government strategy is thus far.

Conversely, we've seen in England and elsewhere different approaches resulting in different effects on the situation of TB there. DEFRA's summary in December confirmed that they've halved the number of new breakdowns in England. So, I'm just interested, really, and my first question would be: to what extent are you learning the lessons that are being learned elsewhere? Are you taking not just those lessons from England but from the Republic of Ireland and elsewhere as well, and how are their experiences impacting or influencing on your approach here in Wales? Because a 12 per cent increase, of course, in the number of cattle slaughtered is unacceptable and that cannot mean business as usual, and I'm afraid that the statement you've issued today has a business-as-usual feel to it.

You say that a report on last year's field work is being finalised in your statement and will be available shortly. I don't want to criticise you for bringing this statement forward, but it would have been more useful, I think, for us to have had that information as part of this statement so that we could have interrogated that data with you here in the Chamber. I don't know whether you'd bring a further oral statement as opposed to a written statement because I'm sure we'd all be interested to see the latest up-to-date evidence in that respect.

You say in the statement it's time to review the current compensation regime, and, yes, £14 million is a lot of money to pay in compensation, but, of course, 11,000 cattle slaughtered is a lot of cattle slaughtered and it represents a huge loss to the farming industry. So, when you describe the current situation as unsustainable, it'd be interesting to hear from you exactly what you mean by that, because are you saying that compensation levels should be lowered? Because it sounds a bit like that, if you ask me, and I'd appreciate clarity. And, of course, the best way of reducing compensation payments is to actually get a grip of the disease and to lower the number of cattle slaughtered. It isn't that long ago, of course, that the compensation regime was reviewed and changed, and now it seems that you want to change it again. It would be useful as well to hear a bit about the process you intend to undertake as part of that: what kind of timescales are we looking at, and is there going to be a reference group, a working group, or how are you going to approach that piece of work?

I think you're perfectly right in referring to Brexit and the implications it'll have because there will be implications—the financial ones that you explicitly refer to, of course, because we know that EU funding has contributed to the Government's efforts in relation to tackling this disease, but I'm also particularly concerned about effects on the veterinary workforce and the availability of vets, because we know that around 44 per cent of all new vets in Wales in the decade up to 2017 came from overseas, and if we lose those people, then, obviously, we're going to be even more susceptible to not only TB but other forms of disease as well.

Finally, Minister, just on vaccinations: clearly, you're intent on that approach, and I suppose vaccination does have a role to play. It only prevents, of course, it doesn't cure bovine TB, so it's not an answer in itself, but it can contribute to a wider strategy. But we know, to our own detriment, that there are issues around supply, so do you not acknowledge that any vaccine strategy is always going to be susceptible to supply interruptions and that that isn't always a very dependable basis upon which to build your strategy for tackling bovine TB?