THE UK government is to introduce new schemes to help guarantee the supply of veterinary medicines to Northern Ireland (NI).

From 2026, the supply of those medicines will be covered by EU rather than UK rules, which was a requirement of NI’s Brexit deal.

Serious concerns were raised by vets that many medicines could become unavailable in NI as they have traditionally been supplied from elsewhere in the UK.

This week, the UK government has said it now believes the majority of medicines will remain available due to suppliers adapting their supply lines.

Medicines at risk of withdrawal will be covered by the new schemes, allowing them to be supplied from Great Britain.

British Veterinary Association president Dr Elizabeth Mullineaux said that while “the remedies provide some reassurances, the detail of how the schemes work for vets in Northern Ireland will be critical to understanding how effective they are in reality”.

The UK government said that out of about 3,000 products licensed for supply in Northern Ireland, its “current expectation is that there will be very limited disruption, with fewer than 20 products due to face discontinuation that we consider are likely to result in significant adverse impacts if not addressed”.