NPA responds to VMD consultation on changes to veterinary medicines laws
3rd Apr 2023 / By Rebecca Veale
The NPA has responded to the Government’s consultation on the law that governs veterinary medicines.
The consultation was launched in February by the Veterinary Medicines Directorate to look at veterinary medicines and medicated feed legislation and update it to reflect the changes and technical advances in the veterinary medicines industry, and importantly to future-proof it.
In response to the consultation, NPA reiterated how important veterinary medicines are for the sector as a key tool in managing the health and welfare of the pig herd, noting practical examples and highlighting how oversight can be provided.
NPA Chief Policy Adviser, Rebecca Veale, said: “It was really important to emphasise the collaborative approach producers and vets have taken with regard to the responsible use of medicines, and in particular antibiotics.”
Much of the legislation is applicable to the companies that hold the Marketing Authorisations for veterinary medicines but the NPA response referenced the impact that these regulations can have further down the supply chain.
“There is the opportunity for Government to streamline the licencing processes whilst providing the necessary oversight in order to encourage research and development in the animal health market. We were clear in that any additional burden for both veterinary medicines and medicated feed will have implications for producers and pig health because this can impact product availability and importantly the cost of treating sick animals.”
NPA worked with groups involved in the Pig Health and Welfare Council to formulate a response and welcomes further engagement with the VMD on this policy.
If members would like to know more about the NPA response then please contact Becca Veale ().
Background
The EU Veterinary Medicinal Products Regulation was brought in to force in 2019 with implementation over several years. But because this fell outside of the window for adoption into UK law, it was not applicable in the UK.
NPA has been lobbying on this legislation for some time, in Europe when we were still part of the EU, and more recently the VMD directly so they have been aware of the NPA position and the actions the pig sector takes for the responsible use of medicines when formulating the proposal.