Brussels, 27/02/2007 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 27 February, the European Commission adopted a decision to set up a veterinary team able to respond rapidly to outbreaks of bird flu, blue tongue, foot and mouth disease or other animal diseases in the EU or in third countries. The decision, which was approved by the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health, provides a formal legal basis for a support structure that has existed for many years.
EU member states will put a range of experts in several disciplines (veterinary science, virology, wildlife laboratory testing, risk management) at the disposal of the Commission. The Commission will ask the Standing Committee to draw up this list, which will be updated annually and published on the Commission internet site.
These experts must be ready to respond rapidly (“within 24 to 36 hours”, according to the Commission) should there be an animal health crisis in an EU member state or third country. The team will work in close collaboration with experts from international organisations, such as the International Office of Epizootics (OIE), the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDPC). It will be charged with providing scientific, technical and administrative assistance in monitoring, following up combating and eradicating animal diseases. The scientific advice of these experts will be drawn up with the help of staff in the Community reference laboratories.
The veterinary experts will receive a €300 premium for each full day worked (€1520 for a half-day or for taking part in an external meeting related to the work of the team). An annual budget of €100,000 has been set aside by the Commission to meet the costs of this group.
The Commission notes that the EU regularly sends specialists to assist member states and third countries which are having difficulty isolating or controlling an epizootic. In 2006, EU veterinary experts were sent to Romania and Bulgaria, and to several third countries (Turkey, Ukraine, Egypt) to diagnose the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of the bird flu virus. Similarly, when blue tongue appeared in sheep in some northern European countries in 2006, the Commission sent veterinary experts from southern member states, used to dealing with this kind of epizootic. (lc)