Government bid to make England TB-free by 2038, with vaccines for cattle and badgers

Official release

The Government is winning its battle against bovine TB – with the number of new TB herd breakdowns in England down by a fifth compared to the previous 12 months and no badgers culled for the first time in over a decade.

Progress in the fight back against the devastating disease comes as the Government (Thursday 5th November) formally adopts a long-term strategy, aimed at eradicating TB from England altogether by 2038.

The multi-faceted approach includes the development of vaccines for cattle and badgers, mandatory blood tests, more robust wildlife surveillance and more test choice.

Bovine TB remains one of the most significant animal health challenges we face. The disease continues to impose a heavy emotional and financial burden on farming families, disrupt rural businesses and leads to the loss of thousands of cattle every year.

The announcement comes as encouraging progress is being made in tackling bovine TB, with herds losing TB free status in England falling by a fifth over the past year and 2026 marking the first year in more than a decade in which no badgers were culled as part of efforts to control the disease – delivering on a manifesto pledge to end the cull.

Work is already underway on several key measures set out in the strategy, including:

The government will also establish a new industry-government board to replace the existing Bovine TB Partnership for England, bringing together government and industry to oversee delivery of the strategy. The board, expected to be established in 2027, will consider and endorse the first delivery plan, setting out the priority actions needed to tackle the disease and how they will be implemented

The government will continue working with farmers, veterinary professionals and other partners to deliver a coordinated approach to tackling bovine TB, helping to protect animal health and reduce the impact of the disease on rural communities.

Notes to editors

Read the government’s response to the recommended strategy.

UK Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs · Open Government Licence v3.0. © Crown copyright. Text excerpted and formatting simplified; media and third-party quotations excluded. No endorsement implied.

Source: UK Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs ↗ · Updated 5 Nov 2026, 5:31 am IST