The amended 18 page document explains the need for continued controls and sets out exactly what poultry keepers, both inside and outside the Higher Risk Areas, will be legally required to do (pages 3 and 4). This guidance is laid out in a more digestible form than the previous document, suggesting Defra has listened to NFU members and industry concerns over the complexity of the first draft.
The amended document also contains a checklist for keepers who are planning on allowing their birds managed access to the range as of the 28 February to ensure that they are compliant with the amended Prevention Zone measures.
It is vital that anyone who wishes to allow their birds access to the range as of 28 February makes a concerted effort to execute all actions on the checklist and stringently document all of these in order to ensure compliance.
The document states that these measures will be in place in the first instance until 30 April 2017 but that they will be kept under constant review with the aim of lifting them as soon as the risk lowers.