The government formally adopted a strategy on Thursday to eradicate bovine TB from England by 2038, saying 2026 was the first year in more than a decade with no badgers culled for disease control.
Defra said the plan, recommended by the steering group of the Bovine TB Partnership for England, was developed with farmers, vets and scientists. It was first published in June and will now be formally taken forward by government.
The department said new TB herd breakdowns in England were down by a fifth on the previous 12 months, and that herds losing TB-free status fell by a fifth over the past year.
The approach covers vaccines for cattle and badgers, mandatory blood tests, wider wildlife surveillance and more choice of test.
On cattle, Defra said work continues on a deployable vaccine and a new skin test, known as DIVA, to tell infected animals from vaccinated ones. The ambition is to deploy cattle vaccination by 2030.
Badger vaccination will be rolled out in priority areas through the newly contracted Badger Vaccination Field Force. A government-funded scheme will also collect and test found dead badgers.
Government-funded mandatory blood testing is being expanded, and additional privately funded testing is being piloted.
A new industry-government board will replace the Bovine TB Partnership for England to oversee delivery. It is expected to be established in 2027 and to endorse the first delivery plan.
Biosecurity Minister Baroness Hayman said the strategy “will ensure the continuation of the end to badger culling, and prevent the spread of this horrific disease”.
Defra’s quarterly statistics measure progress by herd incidence, a rate of new incidents per 100 herd years at risk, rather than a simple count of breakdowns.
On that measure, incidence in England between July 2025 and June 2026 was 6.4, a decrease of 1.4 from the previous 12 months.
The share of herds under restriction because of a TB incident was 3.4 per cent at the end of June 2026, against 4.2 per cent a year earlier. The statistics describe a general downward trend since a peak in 2018.
Cattle slaughtered for TB control in England in the 12 months to June 2026 totalled 20,244, a 4 per cent fall from 21,126 in the previous 12 months. The annual total reached a historical maximum of 34,518 in the 12 months to April 2018.
Defra said the disease places a heavy emotional and financial burden on farming families, disrupts rural businesses and leads to the loss of thousands of cattle every year.
Research commissioned by Defra and the Welsh Government, published on 28 August 2020, put the median cost of a TB breakdown borne directly by cattle farms at around £6,600.
Median costs were about £18,600 for herds of more than 300 cattle and about £1,700 for herds of up to 50.
TB control is a devolved policy, so the strategy applies to England. Scotland has had officially TB-free status since 2009, and Welsh Government policy is to achieve it between 2036 and 2041.
The government’s response to the recommended strategy sets out its approach and plans for long-term control of the disease.
Defra said it will keep working with farmers, veterinary professionals and other partners on a coordinated approach.