Not trying to add to the giddy zephyrs of pure conjecture, or anything, but I was struck by a presser from Paul Frew yesterday which took the DRD to task for dithering over how to deal with Bovine TB.
In it he says:
There is no doubt that Bovine TB cannot be attributed to a single factor, but we cannot escape the fact either that every country which has successfully tackled this disease has put a focus on the reservoir of infection amongst wildlife.
In the Republic of Ireland we have seen action taken and now in England we have seen the start of a cull there. However, DARD’s approach all too often has simply been to call for further research and study. Only after sustained pressure by the Agriculture Committee did the Minister finally announce some progress towards tackling the disease, but the progress on taking this forward is very slow.
There can be no doubt that a multi-faceted approach will be necessary to tackle Bovine TB, but we are still waiting for the TVR (Test, Vaccinate and Release) model to deal with the disease.
Pete wrote a great round up of what’s not happening here, and what is happening elsewhere on this island last summer… A year later, nothing.
Just to note that it is highly unusual for OFMdFM parties to criticise each other’s ministers in public. They usually round on the other smaller parties on their own side. As a result an awful lot of poor to mediocre performances in government goes unreported in the mainstream press.
Is there something wrong lads?
Mick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a regular guest and speaking events across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Twitter: @MickFealty
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