NI pet travel checks delayed
Sailors concerned about pet passport demands when travelling from Britain into Northern Ireland – or NI residents returning from Britain – have been granted a temporary reprieve.
The introduction of checks at Belfast and Larne ports, which pose an additional hurdle to sailors as these ferry ports are not normally open to yachts (PBO news, July 2021), has now been delayed until at least 1 October 2021.
It means anyone travelling with dogs, cats, ferrets or birds, on board to NI from Scotland, England and Wales can continue to do so without the enforcement of new pet restrictions for the time being.
The new requirements include additional documentation, rabies vaccination and a tapeworm treatment, and come as a result of the NI Protocol, meaning pet travellers moving from Great Britain to NI must adhere to the pet travel rules for third countries.
The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) Minister
Edwin Poots has criticised the new measures as ‘unnecessary’, saying: “Given that the last case of rabies on these islands was in 1922, these are unnecessary medical interventions. This issue is yet another example of why the Northern Ireland Protocol is not fit for purpose.”
In conjunction with the Chief Veterinary Officer, Minister
Poots said: “In order to provide much needed clarity, I have taken the decision to delay routine pet travel checks for citizens travelling from GB to NI with their pets until at least 1 October. This is to allow a further period for the ongoing UKG/EU discussions, where pet travel is under consideration, to provide direction on both the requirements necessary and any potential flexibilities.”
Updates will be published at daera-ni.gov.uk