Animal movement restricted as bluetongue spreads in south Scotland

The Scottish government said it continued to work closely with the livestock industry.

Agriculture minister Jim Fairlie said the restrictions would have a significant impact on farmers and on the wider industry.

He said: “I do not underestimate the pressure this places on those affected. I am very grateful for their continued constructive engagement as we work together to introduce an effective control strategy while minimising restrictions on businesses as far as possible.

“We will ensure that control measures are proportionate. This is a dynamic situation while further investigations are carried out, and we will continue to monitor it closely, considering further control measures as necessary in partnership with industry.”

Since the first Scottish case was detected, vets have reported running out of bluetongue vaccines due to the sudden high demand.

Fairlie added: “Vaccination remains our best long-term defence, and I would strongly encourage all farmers to discuss this with their vets and place vaccine orders now to ensure access to supplies.

“We continue to work with other UK nations, manufacturers and distributors to ensure timely access to vaccine, with more doses being brought in from continental Europe and additional supplies now in production.”