Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd – in the Senedd at 2:32 pm on 15 September 2021.
Diolch, Llywydd. Minister, it was good to welcome you to west Wales in August for the Pembrokeshire County Show. I know your attendance will have been appreciated by the show committee and the exhibitors, and I'm sure you will join with me in congratulating the team on their success with the return of the show, following the cancellation last year. I'm also sure that the Minister will wish to pay tribute to farmers across Wales and Britain today as we mark Back British Farming Day.
But if we are to truly back our farmers, we must now work to get on top of the bovine TB crisis in Wales. This morning's news that the number of new TB herd incidents in Wales has increased by 3 per cent in comparison to England and Scotland, which have both seen percentage decreases, will not instil Welsh farmers with confidence in the Government's current policy and testing regime. Therefore, what discussions has the Minister had with Neil Watt and Gordon Harkiss from MV Diagnostics Ltd, who have developed an alternative bovine TB test, Enferplex, which claims to deliver more accurate results than the current test? And if no meeting has occurred, will you meet with them to discuss the Enferplex test and offer your support to help progress a pilot scheme, which could pave the way for a new Welsh bovine TB strategy to eradicate the disease once and for all?