A former employee of the Ministry of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) received compensation of £ 1.25 million and an apology.
In September 2021, Dr. Tamara Bronkars, who works within the Veterinary Service for Animal Health, won a landmark campaign against DAERA.
This concerned serious animal welfare violations, failures in zoonotic control measures (ie transmission of animal-to-human diseases) and traceability in the meat supply chain, which ultimately led to its constructive dismissal.
Dr. Tamara Bronkars worked in the department for 19 years before resigning in February 2018.
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A statement issued by DAERA said he “unreservedly apologizes” to Dr. Bronkars.
John McShane, a lawyer for McCartan Turkington Breen, said: “This is the largest settlement of its kind in Northern Ireland and the result for Dr Bronckaers is fully justified, given the damage it has suffered, which has not affected not only to her career, but also to her family and her financial situation.
“I am relieved for Dr. Bronkers that the outcome of the case confirmed her instructions to McCarton Turkington Bryan. However, this is bitter in the context of an employer who wants to make false accusations against Dr. Bronkars in a negative light and which has led a dedicated person to lose their job when they have done nothing wrong.
“It is also worrying that Northern Ireland’s public services are not learning any lessons, and this case is similar to the Ashes for Money scandal.
Dr Tamara Bronkars said: “The last few years have been extremely painful for me and my family. This result has been expected for a long time and I can move forward with the knowledge that I did what was right, and now I have a long-awaited and justified apology from the department.
“I have witnessed first-hand animals suffer unnecessarily, and I believe that over a period of five years, more than 20,000 animals have participated in deleted moves that would have significant implications for traceability in the supply chain.
“I strongly believed that the department was not fulfilling its responsibilities to protect animal welfare, so I could not continue to do work that I was not allowed to do ethically. I couldn’t sit and watch these violations continue. “
During the trial, Dr. Bronckaers made two arguments regarding gaps in the legislation, including that some livestock market operators did not comply with their legal obligations and responsibilities and that department staff were aware of this and did not adhered to their responsibilities for implementing the relevant legislation.
Dr Bronkars said the failures involved erasing the movement of cattle under the provisions on the identification of cattle (Notice of Birth, Death and Movement) (Northern Ireland, 1999), along with serious neglect of animals and movement. of potentially tuberculosis-infected cattle once purchased on the livestock market.
John McShane added: “I am amazed at Dr. Bronkars’ courage. She was willing to do what was ethically right, to the detriment of herself, her family and her standard of living in retirement. This is a choice that very few people would make, as the easier way would be to remain silent.
“We hope that the result of this landmark case gives confidence that at least those who choose to report have protection from the law.
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