Explanatory note

This Order amends the Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (Scotland) Order 2019 (“the principal Order”) which makes provision for the control and eradication of bovine viral diarrhoea (“BVD”) in Scotland. The amendments made by article 2 of the Order come into force on 1 July 2025, and the amendments made by article 3 of the Order come into force on 1 February 2026.

Article 2(a) amends article 14 of the principal Order to remove the restrictions on taking samples from the official ear tag or management tag of a calf under 20 days of age.

Article 2(b) substitutes article 31 of the principal Order. Currently article 31 restricts a keeper from moving animals off a holding where sampling obligations are missed. Under the substituted article 31 the restriction will only apply in relation to keepers of a breeding bovine animal without an individual BVD status where the first compliance deadline for sampling is missed. Other provisions of the principal Order already place restrictions on the movements of animals off a holding where other sampling obligations are missed.

Article 2(c) substitutes a new article 34 in the principal Order. Currently article 34 restricts a keeper from moving bovine animals onto a holding where a bovine animal with an individual BVD status of positive is present on the holding unless the movement is under a licence granted by a veterinary inspector or the Scottish Ministers. Under the substituted article 34 the restriction will apply where a bovine animal with an individual status of positive is present, and has been kept, on the holding for more than 40 days.

Article 2(d) amends article 35A of the principal Order which currently requires the keeper of a breeding herd which contains bovine animals with an individual BVD status of positive to separate those animals from the rest of the herd. Article 35A is amended to place this obligation on the keeper of any herd which contains animals with an individual BVD status of positive.

Article 3(1)(a) amends article 2(1) of the principal Order and replaces the definition of a “qualifying calf”. Keepers of qualifying calves must take a sample and submit it for testing before the calf is 40 days old, and are restricted from moving the animal off the holding until the animal has an individual BVD status of negative. Currently only calves not born into a breeding herd or to a breeding bovine animal are qualifying calves. Article 3(1)(a) substitutes a new definition which also includes any calves born to a dam which became part of a breeding herd, or is a breeding bovine animal, moved onto the holding of the calf’s birth while the dam was pregnant with the calf. Article 3(2) provides that the new definition only applies to calves born on or after 1 February 2026.

Article 3(1)(b) inserts a new article 33A into the principal Order. Article 33A restricts the keeper of a breeding herd with a collective BVD status of not negative, and who has not complied with the additional sampling obligations in article 12 of the principal Order, from moving bovine animals onto the holding until the breeding herd has a collective BVD status of negative.