Farmers in the south of England can at last begin the battle against bluetongue disease now that the first batch of vaccine has been sent out to vets this week.

The first of one million doses is now available to wholesalers and ready for distribution to the protection zones in England.

While Scottish farmers are anxious that bluetongue is contained south of the border, Nigel Miller, NFU Scotland vice-president, has warned them to be equally vigilant against the spread of bovine tuberculosis (TB).

The latest figures on TB show that there were 19 confirmed new cases in Scotland in 2007 - a similar level to 2006 and maintaining Scotland's low incidence status for this devastating disease.

However, there is no room for complacency, particularly in light of the spiralling incidence of TB in parts of England and Wales. There were 2151 confirmed new incidents in England and Wales last year, up from 2023 the year before. More alarming is that in the first two months of 2008, 488 new TB cases were identified south of the border.

Miller said: "All eyes have been focused on the threat from bluetongue disease to the health of our animals and the economic viability of our livestock industry. The veterinary opinion is that animal movements present the greatest risk of bringing the disease to Scotland and the advice remains that producers should only source animals from areas guaranteed to be free of the disease.

"The same principle applies to the growing threat from bovine TB. Scotland has an excellent record in keeping the number of cases of TB at a very low level. We must all work hard to protect that. The pre and post-movement testing requirements for cattle coming out of high-risk areas in the rest of the UK are helping to safeguard Scotland's record on TB and must be complied with.

"For those sourcing cattle from low-risk TB areas, there are a number of things they can do to reduce their risk of buying in disease. Firstly, they should find out when the cattle were last tested for TB.

"Secondly, it is good management practice for bought-in animals to be isolated for a period of time, before introducing them to other animals on the farm. If purchased cattle have not been tested for TB in recent times, then using your local vet to privately test bought-in stock would provide worthwhile reassurance.

"We have huge sympathy for those producers in England and Wales who are trapped by the scourge of TB while policymakers continue to dither over the appropriate control strategies. However, their horrendous experience of living with TB in their herds simply emphasises the clear need for Scottish farmers to remain vigilant to this disease."