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Mr. Bradshaw: In response to the hon. Gentleman's first point, his written questions will be answered as soon as possible. He is inundating our Department with questions at the moment—as is his right, of course. Officials are very busy dealing with the immediate threat posed by this outbreak and other problems that we face, but I assure him that we will answer his questions, numerous as they are, as soon as we possibly can.
On cooked meat, as I said to the hon. Member for St. Ives (Andrew George), according to the advice of the FSA and its European equivalent, there is no danger from meat that has been heated to 70°, so the import ban does not extend to products that have been thus heated.
Discussions have been held with the Thai Government and with other Governments in the region. The advice to UK travellers there would be to avoid, if at all possible, anywhere where they may come into contact with poultry.
Mr. Tam Dalyell (Linlithgow) (Lab): As my hon. Friend will know from his previous incarnation as a Foreign Office Minister, we have good relations with the countries of south-east Asia. However, is it not of paramount importance that there is candour as to what has happened, and that to achieve that we must offer help? One practical piece of help would be to approach the university of Edinburgh and the research organisations centred around Edinburgh, which have internationally famous expertise in tropical diseases and, indeed, in poultry research. Will my hon. Friend approach Professor Ian Maudlin or other heads of department to see whether it is possible that a small group could be sent to help in south-east Asia?
Mr. Bradshaw: I absolutely agree with the Father of the House about our good relations with the countries of south-east Asia. That is particularly true of Thailand, which is very friendly towards the UK. We have used those good relations to avoid some of the danger that might have been posed by the outbreak. I will consult my officials about his kind offer. We are as interested as anybody in exchanging expertise on the matter, and if it was felt that such a visit would be helpful at this stage, we would consider it very positively.
Mr. Michael Jack (Fylde) (Con): Anybody who has heard the BBC's "Farming Today" broadcasts from Thailand will understand the devastating effect that the
outbreak is having on local communities there. Following the comments of the hon. Member for Linlithgow (Mr. Dalyell), what steps are being taken to encourage throughout south-east Asia a regime of openness about outbreaks of this or any other animal disease conditions? For example, there are reports that ducks in China now have the same condition.What contribution is the UK scientific community making to monitoring the possible development of mutant species of the condition, which may jump species or even affect human beings? Those are the unknowns: what are we doing to address them?
Mr. Bradshaw: The right hon. Gentleman is absolutely right about the importance of openness. I, too, have read some of the more alarmist media reports suggesting a cover-up, but we have no evidence of a deliberate cover-up in Thailand. The matter has been handled well by contrast with the way in which China handled the severe acute respiratory syndrome—SARS—outbreak last year. However, one of the lessons that we have learned in Britain and in wider Europe is that when it comes to food safety and animal health, openness is essential if one is to maintain consumer confidence in one's product.
The hon. Gentleman is right to draw the House's attention to the dangers of the virus mutating, because that is when it could become really dangerous to human beings. If it mutated into a virus that could be passed from human to human, as happened more recently during the 1952 outbreak, we could face real problems. He will be well aware that the World Health Organisation, as well as UK health authorities, is keeping close watch on the situation.
Mr. Bill Wiggin (Leominster) (Con): The Minister made some nice and accurate comments about the poultry sector, which, as he is aware, receives no Government funding. If he is as satisfied as he says about the biosecurity actions taken by the Government to protect the British poultry sector, will he guarantee to pay compensation if the disease gets to Britain?
Mr. Bradshaw: It is a notifiable disease, so of course compensation is considered in the event of stocks having to be destroyed. The hon. Gentleman is right to congratulate the poultry industry on being a part of our agriculture sector that does not, in general, rely on subsidy—it would be nice if that practice was more common throughout the sector.
Sir Robert Smith (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD): The Minister highlighted the importance of people recognising the quality of British-produced poultry. Coverage of this incident might have brought home to people who take good animal welfare standards seriously the different standards that are operated by producers in different parts of the world and the importance of backing the British poultry industry. To that end, is it important to get across to them the fact that whenever they buy produce made from chicken, the chances are that it will come from imported chicken?
Mr. Bradshaw: The hon. Gentleman is right. Not just the quality of the product in the UK, which is superior, but our welfare standards are second to none in the world. Consumers should take that into account habitually when making shopping decisions. Labelling, as the hon. Gentleman will know, is the responsibility of the FSA. At present, processed meat in food products is not labelled as clearly as he and others might wish.
Mrs. Cheryl Gillan (Chesham and Amersham) (Con): The Minister has spoken of the devastating effect of the virus in the far east, but obviously we are worried about any implications for the United Kingdom and our citizens travelling abroad. I understand that the new H5N1 virus is resistant to the old generic flu drugs. Have the Government been able to establish whether the newer drugs, such as Tamiflu and Relenza, would be effective against it? Can the Minister tell us what is the current position in regard to their supply?
Mr. Bradshaw: In vitro work is under way in a number of countries, with the use of the H5N1 virus isolated from humans. The virus is expected to be susceptible to the neuraminidase inhibitors, but preliminary sequence data suggest that the Vietnam strains to date have a mutation in the viral M2 gene that will render the viruses resistant to Amantadine—although experimental confirmation is required. I will ask a ministerial colleague from the Department of Health to write to the hon. Lady comprehensively about vaccines.
Mr. Roger Williams (Brecon and Radnorshire) (LD): The Minister will know how dependent this country has become on imports of poultry meat from Thailand. Just before Christmas he wrote to me apologising for not being able to meet a group of poultry producers because of lack of time. They wanted to discuss threats to the poultry industry.
The country will now depend on those producers even more now. It will depend on them to fill the gap left by the lack of imports from Thailand. Will the Minister reconsider his decision?
Has the Minister made any assessment of how the country will fare in terms of its favourite dish, which I take to be chicken tikka masala?
Mr. Bradshaw: The hon. Gentleman is not quite right in saying that the UK has become dependent on imports from Thailand. Most of the chicken consumed here is still home-produced. It is true, however, that after Brazil, Thailand is the main source of imports, particularly of chicken for the processing industry.
I am sorry that I had to decline the hon. Gentleman's kind invitation to meet his local poultry producers, but I meet poultry producers fairly regularly. For me, one of the highlights of the run-up to Christmas was presenting the awards at the annual British Poultry Council award ceremony. As the hon. Gentleman says, our poultry industry makes a massive contribution to our rural economy. It is highly successful, very skilled and makes products of great quality. I am sure that the recent scares, which have been exaggerated in some media reports, will not prevent people in this country from enjoying their favourite dish, whatever it may be.
Mr. Simon Thomas (Ceredigion) (PC): At least the Minister does not look like a turkey over this one. [Hon. Members: "He does."] Well, possibly. Anyway, will he look at the effect of the EU ban on the Thai economy? Producers in Thailand may be tempted to try to get around it, which could increase the difficulties we already face in regard to illegal imports.
We hope that the ban will be lifted when a solution is found. What work will the Minister undertake at EU level to ensure that labelling is better in future, thus improving consumer choice? We may think about that when choosing chicken from the United Kingdom in supermarkets and butchers' shops, but we may not think about it in McDonald's or Wimpy bars. It might useful to consider what we can do at EU level to support home-grown industries that have better environmental and welfare standards.
Mr. Bradshaw: I have no doubt that there will be a serious impact on the Thai economy, because chicken production is very important to Thailand; but Thailand has had a robust economy for a number of years—perhaps the most successful economy in the south-east Asian region. We will do all we can—both Britain and the EU as a whole—to encourage further trade with Thailand, and to help it to recover from any setback that this causes.
I have nothing much to add to what I have already said about labelling. It is the responsibility of the FSA. It has improved significantly under the present Government, although it has still not improved as much as the hon. Gentleman and others might wish. I can only repeat that most fresh chicken, and indeed most meat on the shelves in shops in this country, is labelled, and I recommend that people look for the British label.
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