THE Government is being urged to reclassify the bluetongue disease (BTV3) which ravaged Exmoor farms this summer.

The move would lead to quicker testing for the disease and better monitoring of it, thereby strengthening protection against its spread.

It follows evidence taken by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Farming (APPG), which is co-chaired by West Somerset MP Rachel Gilmour.

The APPG held an evidence session last week to examine the impact of the ongoing bluetongue outbreak and the challenges facing livestock farmers across Somerset and Devon and the wider UK.

Farms on Exmoor were among the worst affected in the country after midges which spread the disease among cattle and sheep and other cloven hoofed animals were thought to have overwintered in Britain after drifting on winds from Europe.

Mrs Gilmour and other APPG members heard evidence from Sheep Veterinary Society senior vice-president Phillipa Page and NFU Livestock Board vice-chairman Mark Weekes, who is a Devon sheep farmer.

The meeting focused on the ‘devastating’ effects of the outbreak on livestock farming, the animals, and resultant significant financial pressures.

Concerns were raised that the outbreak had exposed shortcomings in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) readiness and capacity to support and protect the agricultural sector.

Members felt the Government should urgently reconsider reclassifying BTV3, which would be a ‘sensible, quick, and low-cost step that would speed up testing and monitoring capacity for the disease’, and therefore offer stronger protections against its spread.

It would be a significant first step in building confidence across an agricultural sector which was facing a ‘perfect storm of financial, climate, and geopolitical headwinds beyond individual farmers’ control’.

Mrs Gilmour later said: “At a time when farmers are already facing immense pressure, the Government must act quickly.

“Reclassifying BTV3 would be a straightforward and cost-effective measure demonstrating much-needed support for Britain’s farming communities.”