Animal Health Surveillance Governance Board
The Animal Health Surveillance Governance Board (AHSGB) advises Defra and the Welsh Government on animal health scanning surveillance in England and Wales.
Whilst the Board’s primary responsibility and focus is animal health ‘scanning surveillance’ in England and Wales, the Board is mindful of the linkages and dependencies between ‘scanning surveillance’ and other components of the overall surveillance system in Great Britain.
The AHSGB is a partnership Board between government and the livestock industry, recognising that animal keepers and allied sectors, including the veterinary profession, are providers of data and information to the system, and are beneficiaries of the intelligence, reports and advice that are produced.
The benefits of animal health scanning surveillance are jointly owned, reflecting the shared responsibility and risk ownership of changes in animal-related threat status and disease trends and profiles. It is intended that the structure, membership and actions of the AHSGB reflect this.
Role of the group
The AHSGB provides strategic advice to Defra and the Welsh Government and their advisory bodies, the Animal Health and Welfare Board for England and the Wales Animal Health and Welfare Framework Group.
Responsibilities
Responsibilities of the group are described in the .
Membership
The AHSGB is a subgroup of a combined college of the Animal Health and Welfare Board for England and the Welsh Government Animal Health and Welfare Framework Group, acting jointly and in equal measure.
Membership of the Board (March 2018)
| Role | Member |
|---|---|
| Independent Chair (interim): | Paul Roger (previously an independent member of the Board) |
| Three independent members: | Paul Burr |
| Nick Fenwick | |
| Ian McGrath | |
| Ex-officio members: | Christine Middlemiss - UK Chief Veterinary Officer |
| Graeme Cooke - UK Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer | |
| Richard Irvine - APHA Head of Surveillance Intelligence Unit | |
| Policy colleagues: | Gordon Hickman, Head of Exotic Disease Policy, Defra |
| Ellen Brown - Policy Lead - Scanning Surveillance/Animal Health and Traceability Data Sharing | |
| Welsh Government | Gavin Watkins (deputising for Christianne Glossop, CVO Wales), Policy Lead: Surveillance |
Independent members of the board were appointed to provide leadership, combined with knowledge of veterinary surveillance, disease investigation science and the livestock industries and populations protected by the surveillance system. They are representative of the industries being served, but not representatives of any particular organisation.
Notes of meetings
The AHSGB publishes notes of its meetings as follows:
Review of the AHSGB
Further information
Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA)
Secretariat
Jane Tennant
Scientific Project Manager
Science Strategy and Planning
Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA)
Weybourne Building
Level 2, Area D
New Haw
Addlestone
Surrey
KT15 3NB