| Previous Section | Home Page |
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many tests of cattle heads were conducted for BSE in the first four months of the current year ; and how many were confirmed.
Mr. Maclean : In the first four months of this year 4,215 cattle were slaughtered as BSE suspects. Of those, BSE has been confirmed in 3,596. Results are pending on 186.
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, pursuant to his answer of 16 May, what information he has concerning the number and distribution of calves born to cows subsequently confirmed as BSE sufferers.
Mr. Maclean : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for South Shields (Dr. Clark) on 23 April, Official Report, column 80 .
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, whether it is his Department's practice to confirm by laboratory tests all notified cases of BSE.
Mr. Maclean : All cattle slaughtered as suspected cases of BSE are subject to diagnostic laboratory tests.
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will publish a table showing the distribution of the total number of confirmed cases of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, by county, in the United Kingdom in the four weeks to 17 May.
Mr. Maclean : The information for Great Britain is as follows :
County |Number
--------------------------------------------
Avon |27
Bedfordshire |4
Berkshire |3
Borders |1
Buckinghamshire |11
Cambridgeshire |5
Central |3
Cheshire |32
Cleveland |1
Clwyd |11
Cornwall |72
Cumbria |16
Derbyshire |11
Devonshire |94
Dorset |80
Dumfries |6
Durham |11
Dyfed |76
Essex |7
Fife |3
Glamorgan M |6
Glamorgan W |1
Gloucestershire |45
Grampian |7
Gwent |11
Gwynedd |3
Hampshire |50
Hereford and Worcestershire |23
Hertfordshire |5
Highland |5
Humberside |4
Isle of Wight |5
Kent |25
Lancashire |38
Leicestershire |27
Lincolnshire |10
Manchester |1
Norfolk |15
Northamptonshire |8
Northumberland |4
Nottinghamshire |8
Oxfordshire |20
Powys |13
Salop |28
Somerset |95
Staffordshire |28
Strathclyde |13
Suffolk |13
Surrey |18
Sussex E |21
Sussex W |22
Tayside |2
Warwickshire |10
Wiltshire |39
Yorkshire N |45
Yorkshire S |5
Yorkshire W |1
|-------
Total |1,148
Sir Richard Body : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether any cattle infected by bovine spongiform encephalopathy have been buried in Lincolnshire.
Mr. Maclean : Yes ; such carcases are buried on licensed tips owned by, and with the agreement of, the county council.
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what progress has been made in the development of diagnostic testing for the agent of bovine spongiform encephalopathy ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Maclean : The nature of the BSE agent requires the application of molecular biology techniques for the development of a diagnostic test. Research is in hand, but cannot be expected to yield results for several years at least.
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food at what stage in the development of bovine spongiform encephalopathy in the sub-clinically affected animal it is possible to identify bovine spongiform encephalopathy by histopathological examination.
Mr. Maclean : Research to establish this is being planned, but results will not be available for several years.
Column 86
Mr. John Garrett : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps his staff have taken to ensure that the heads and spinal columns of BSE-infected animals dumped at Attebridge, Norfolk, have been incinerated and that there is no evidence of the BSE virus leading into the River Wensum.
Mr. Maclean : Heads of suspect BSE cattle are removed for diagnosis and then destroyed by incineration. All carcases are buried in accordance with sound veterinary practices to ensure that none poses a risk of spreading disease.
Veterinary Investigation Service
Mr. John Evans : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement about the future of the veterinary investigation service.
Mr. Maclean : The review of the veterinary investigation service commissioned by the Minister has now been completed and will shortly be submitted to Ministers for their consideration. No decisions have as yet been taken on any of the recommendations of this review.
Zoonoses Order
Mrs. Gorman : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what recent representation he has received on the Zoonoses Order 1989.
Mr. Maclean : I have received a number of representations on the Zoonoses Order 1989 about the arrangements for the compulsory slaughter with compensation of salmonella-infected poultry flocks. These were taken into account when new compensation rates were announced on 13 February followed by provisions for the processing of carcases from infected flocks, under carefully controlled conditions, which I announced on 26 March.
Mrs. Gorman : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will increase to 100 per cent. compensation paid to farmers whose poultry are slaughtered under the Zoonoses Order 1989 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Maclean : I have no plans to do so. The present compensation arrangements are in line with the requirements of the Animal Health Act 1981 and any producer who disputes the Ministry's valuation can take the matter to independent arbitration.
Slaughterhouses
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on his timetable for the implementation of the European Community requirement for the ante mortem veterinary inspection of livestock at all slaughterhouses.
Mr. Maclean : I regret that the reply which I gave to the hon. Member on 3 May, Official Report, column 641, contained a typing error. Ante mortem inspection is to be introduced in non-exporting plants from 1 January 1991, not 1 January 1993.
Mr. Riddick : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the European Commission's proposals concerning the slaughter of horses.
Column 87
Mr. Maclean : I am not aware of any European Commission proposals exclusively concerned with the slaughter of horses. However, Commission officials are working on a draft measure on the welfare of all animals, including horses, at slaughter. A formal proposal has not yet been made to the Council, but I welcome the Commission's intention to propose a strengthening of Community legislation in this important area.Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when the requirement for the high temperature processing of slaughterhouse waste before turning into cattle cake was relaxed ; what scientific advice was taken ; and if he has any proposals for restoring the regulations in the light of the transmission of scrapie to cattle.
Mr. Maclean : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Lancashire, West (Mr. Hind) of 14 March, Official Report, column 241.
Mr. Butler : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will take steps to ensure that red meat from cows is not contaminated by nervous tissue during the slaughtering process.
Mr. Maclean : The Specified Bovine Offal (Prohibition) Regulations 1989 make it an offence to use in food for human consumption any specified bovine offal. This is an ultra-precautionary measure applying to all cattle over six months of age designed to ensure that no material in which the BSE agent, if it is present, is most likely to occur enters human food. The enforcement of standards of practice in slaughterhouses, including the hygienic removal of specified bovine offal, is the responsibility of local authorities. The Ministry is ready to give advice if it is needed and we are considering the issue of guidance.
Fishing Vessels
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) if he will supply the costs and earnings for the period 1983 to 1989 for United Kingdom fishing vessels broken down by vessel type : (a) beam trawlers, (b) pelagic trawlers, (c) otter trawlers, (d) demersal seiners, (e) purse seiners and (f) drifters ;
(2) if he will supply figures for the costs and earnings of United Kingdom fishing vessels in England and Wales for the period 1983 to 1989, broken down by Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food category vessel size (a) under 40 ft, (b) 40 to 79.9 ft, (c) 80 to 109.9 ft, (d) 110 to 139.9 ft and (e) 140 ft and over.
Mr. Curry : The information requested is not readily available but I will write to the hon. Member as soon as possible.
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what proposals he has for improving conservation by decommissioning grants for fishing vessels ; and what funds are available from the European Community for this purpose.
Mr. Curry : I have nothing to add to the replies which I gave to the hon. Member on 11 January, 22 February and 18 April, columns 1077-78, 901 and 954.
Column 88
Food and Wine Surpluses
Mr. Teddy Taylor : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is his latest estimate of the amount which will be spent each week by the EEC in 1990 on the disposal and destruction of food and wine surpluses ; and if the figure has been reviewed in the light of the recent price settlement.
Mr. Curry : The European Commission's latest estimate of expenditure expected in 1990 on storage withdrawal and export refunds for agricultural products is 218 million ecu (£156 million) per week. A revised estimate has not been produced since the price-fixing settlement of 27 April, but we do not expect this expenditure to increase significantly in 1990 as a result of the price fixing.
Research and Development
Dr. David Clark : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will place a copy of the Barnes review report on research and development in the Library.
Mr. Gummer : No. The Barnes review was an internal exercise whose report, like all advice from officials to Ministers, is confidential.
Government Supply Index
Mr. Devlin : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement about his Department's decision not to participate in the Government supply index.
Mr. Curry : The Department joined the Government supply index as a founder member in 1987 and has no plans to withdraw its participation.
Fishing Industry
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information his Department has on the average earnings of employees in the United Kingdom fish-catching sector by salary grade.
Mr. Curry : The information requested is not available.
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information his Department has on the average earnings of employees in the United Kingdom fish-catching sector by (a) region and (b) Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food category vessel size bands.
Mr. Maclean : The information requested is not available.
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information his Department has on the average number of employees per vessel in the United Kingdom fish-catching sector by Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food category vessel size bands.
Mr. Curry : Estimates of the average number of employees per vessel in the United Kingdom fish-catching sector are shown in the table. The information comes from records of crew size for each vessel held by Fisheries Departments.
Column 89
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Scrapie
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when the earliest research was carried out in the United Kingdom concerning the infection under laboratory conditions of bovine brains by scrapie ; and when was the first confirmation that such infection was possible.
Mr. Maclean : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Truro (Mr. Taylor) on 15 March, Official Report, column 325.
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when his Department first became aware of the ability to transmit under experimental conditions sheep scrapie to other animal species.
Mr. Maclean : The first report of the transmission of sheep scrapie to another species, in this case goats, was published in 1939. The first report of transmission to animals other than sheep and goats (mice) was published in 1961.
Sugar Levy
Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he has received any representations about the levy to be imposed on sugar by the intervention board ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Curry : I have not received any representations about the levies imposed on sugar other than general comments in the context of the EC review of the sugar regime.
Pet Food
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on his consultations with the Pet Food Manufacturers Association concerning the incorporation of bovine offals in pet food.
Mr. Maclean : My officials have discussed the matter with the Pet Food Manufacturers Association and made clear that there is no scientific justification for stopping the use of bovine offals in food.
Column 90
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information he has on the number of pet food manufacturers currently incorporating those bovine offals specified in the Bovine Offals Order in their pet food products.
Mr. Maclean : This information is not available. However, the Pet Food Manufacturers Association, which represents 95 per cent. of pet food manufacturers, advises its members not to use the specified offals.
Cricket Bats
Mr. Allen : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what representations he has received from the makers of cricket bats regarding the supply of willow.
Forestry
Mr. McFall : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food when he last met representatives of the Forestry Commission to discuss forestry in England.
Mr. Gummer : I met the chairman of the Forestry Commission on 14 November 1989 when we discussed a range of forestry topics. My noble Friend the Minister of State meets commission officials frequently.
British Beef
Dr. David Clark : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) what advice he is giving to local authorities that are intending to ban or have banned British beef from their establishments ; and if he will make a statement ;
(2) on how many occasions, and in which local authorities, members of his staff have met representatives from local authorities to discuss proposed or existing bans on British beef in establishments of the local authorities concerned ;
(3) if he will list the local authorities that are intending to ban or have banned British beef in their establishments ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Gummer [holding answer 17 May 1990] : All local authorities have been advised of the Department of Health's view that British beef can be eaten safely by everyone. This Ministry has issued comprehensive guidance to all local authorities, copies of which have been placed in the Library of the House.
|
| Home Page |