The government has announced £200 million of funding to help aid the UK's fight against devastating livestock diseases such as bird flu and bovine TB.
The investment will be pumped into the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) laboratories at Weybridge, known globally for its scientific and veterinary capability.
APHA, responsible for safeguarding animal and plant health, helped control the devastating outbreaks of foot and mouth disease in 2001, and is currently tasked with tackling the largest avian influenza outbreak on record.
Research there has also paved the way for field trials of a TB cattle vaccine, which if successful will enable farmers to vaccinate their animals against the deadly disease.
Announcing the £200m investment, Defra said the funds would be used toward purchasing new equipment and specialist testing facilities at Weybridge.
The department said APHA scientists would be better able to identify pathogens for existing and emerging threats posed by diseases spread by animals, and maintain the UK's high biosecurity standards.
"This investment in facilities will further enable Weybridge scientists to quickly sample, analyse and confirm the presence of bird flu in a location so APHA can act fast to tackle the threat," a Defra spokesperson said.
"Alongside these existing threats, the UK must be prepared for future risks from animal diseases which could pose a significant risk to UK farming and wildlife including African swine fever.
"This investment will offer APHA greater capacity to track diseases of concern across the globe and conduct research into a growing number of high-risk threats in advanced high-containment laboratories."
As well as protecting animal health and the public, a strong animal health science capability is seen as crucial to protect the industries that rely on exporting animal and animal by-products, which were estimated to be in excess of £12bn in 2019.
APHA chief executive, Ian Hewett confirmed that work was already underway to transform the campus, paving the way for a future science hub.
"The investment confirmed today will also enhance the capacity of the site to allow scientists to manage concurrent outbreaks and conduct research in parallel.
"This will help to control and eradicate animal and plant diseases and pests whilst reducing the risks from new and emerging threats."
In March 2020, a previous announcement included £1.2bn in funding for the Science Capability in Animal Health programme at Weybridge, as well as £200m for critical maintenance.
