The Dover Port Health team have now removed over a staggering 300 tonnes of illegal meat at Dover.

DPHA welcome and support the work and findings of the Environment, Food, Rural Affairs (EFRA) Select Committee, National Audit Office (NAO), and Public Accounts Select Committee (PAC) regarding biosecurity at the border (Britain’s illegal meat crisis) and the UK's Resilience to threats from animal disease.

EFRA Select Committee recommending 'that POAO enforcement powers and funding be transferred to port health authorities; in any interim period, emergency funding should be provided to at least double DPHA's operational coverage at the border'.

And;

Public Accounts Committee recommending that 'when determining the resources made available to DPHA and Border Force at Dover to tackle illegal meat imports, weigh this against the significant costs a major disease outbreak could have if introduced through the port of Dover'.

With seizures continuing to escalate, over 4 tonnes removed last week alone, the risk to Great Britain’s biosecurity is undeniable.

DPHA look forward to continuing to work with Defra to ensure that the recommendations of these critical reports can be effectively acted upon!

Read the recommendations in:·        

• Biosecurity at the border: Britain's illegal meat crisis
• UK-EU trade: towards a resilient border strategy    
• Resilience to threats from animal disease
• Resilience to animal diseases

DPHA: Protecting the border at the border.