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27 May 2004 : Column 1741W—continued

Foot and Mouth

Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the report on foot and mouth disease at the Waugh's farm by Mr. Jim Dring was (a) first received by her Ministers; and (b) first received by her. [173994]

Margaret Beckett: My Ministers and I were briefed about and had access to Mr. Dring's statement concerning the Waugh's farm in the week preceding our publication of his statement.

GM Feed

Mr. Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make a statement on the labelling requirements for (a) milk and (b) meat produced from animals fed on genetically modified feed. [173553]

Mr. Morley: Regulation (EC) 1829/2003 on genetically modified (GM) food and feed introduces new rules for the labelling of food and feed containing, consisting of, or produced from genetically modified organisms (GMOs). The Regulation took direct and full effect in Member States from 18 April 2004.

There is no requirement under the new rules to label products such as milk or meat or eggs obtained from animals fed with GM feed as there is no GM material in these products to detect.

Heddon View Farm

Mr. Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) if she will define the extent of the processing premises at Heddon View; [174539]

(2) whether the premises designated for processing at Heddon View Farm were analogous to the premises designated by Mr. Jim Dring as direct contact. [174541]

Mr. Bradshaw: The processing premises were in a self contained roofed building and were therefore compliant with the requirements in Schedule 5 of the Animal By-Products Order 1999. The processing premises at Heddon View were separate from the pig premises referred to as a direct contact by Jim Dring.
 
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IACS Payments

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 28 April 2004, Official Report, column 1025W, to the hon. Member for Salisbury (Mr. Key), on Severely Disadvantaged Areas, what assessment she has made of the extent of non-receipt of integrated administration and control system forms; and how many farms have contacted the Rural Payments Agency to request forms. [174371]

Alun Michael: The Rural Payments Agency sent out replacement Integrated Administration and Control System (IACS) forms to some 1,500 applicants approximately 2.2 per cent. of the total number of IACS applicants.

Psittacosis

Mr. Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will list the cases of psittacosis confirmed in Sway in Hampshire in each year since 2000 and the actions taken by her Department; and if she will make a statement. [174629]

Mr. Bradshaw: There have been four recorded cases of psittacosis in Sway, Hampshire since 2000:

	Number of cases
2000	0
2001	3
2002	1
2003	0
2004 (to date)	0

The veterinary surgeon submitting the samples was informed of the results of the examination carried out by the Veterinary Laboratories Agency Regional Laboratory and reminded that psittacosis is a zoonosis (infection transmissible between animals and man) and the public health implications for the owner.

The public health authorities were informed and a visit was made to the premises in 2002 by a Veterinary Officer from the local Defra Animal Health Divisional Office to offer advice on the control of the disease.

Swill Feeding

Mr. Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether her Department carried out risk assessment on the feeding of swill to pigs prior to the outbreak of foot and mouth disease in 2001. [166759]

Mr. Bradshaw: No. No formal risk assessment was carried out prior to the 2001 foot and mouth disease outbreak. Following the outbreak veterinary advice was that there was a risk from domestically produced meat because of the amount of virus in circulation.

Water Technologies

Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many
 
27 May 2004 : Column 1743W
 
products have been approved for inclusion in the Enhanced Capital Allowance Scheme for Water Technologies. [175278]

Margaret Beckett: The Water Technology Product List which lists all products that are eligible for inclusion in the scheme, was launched on 6 November 2003. Since the launch, 115 products have been approved for inclusion in the scheme.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY

Accident Surveillance

Jim Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether her Department maintains the (a) Home Accidents Deaths Database, (b) the Home Accident Surveillance System and (c) the Leisure Accidents Surveillance System. [175826]

Mr. Sutcliffe: On 2 May 2003, my hon. Friend the Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Miss Johnson), the then Minister for Competition, Consumers and Markets, announced that the DTI will no longer collect statistics on the causes and nature of home and leisure accidents. Following increased pressure on resources and the need to focus on the Department's core priorities, hard decisions had to be made on what to stop. The Home Accident Surveillance System (HASS) and the Leisure Accidents Surveillance System (LASS) did not fit with these priorities.

Data from HASS and LASS for the years 2000, 2001 and 2002 were published in December 2003. These systems are no longer maintained by DTI, and no further data have been collected beyond 2002. An inquiry service on HASS and LASS historic data up to and including 2002 is being provided by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) for a period of five years with effect from 1 January 2004.

The Home Accidental Deaths Database held data up to and including 1995, and for similar reasons is no longer maintained by the Department. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) collects information about fatal accidents.

Coal Compensation Schemes

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many coal compensation scheme claims have resulted in full and final settlements of less than (a) £1,000 and (b) £500. [176105]

Nigel Griffiths: As of 26 May 2004, the figures are as follows:

	Number of settlements less than £1,000	Of which number of settlements less than £500
COPD	26,281	11,867
VWF	2,971	301

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many coal compensation scheme claims have resulted in solicitors being paid more than claimants. [176106]

 
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Nigel Griffiths: As of 26 May 2004, the figures are:

	Number of settlements where solicitor costs exceed damages paid to claimant
COPD	46,768
VWF	2,655

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations have been made to her since Easter about the possibility of minimum payments for coal compensation schemes. [176107]

Nigel Griffiths: The Claimants Representative Group advised the judge that they were looking at the possibility of a minimum payment arrangement for respiratory disease claims. The Department has received two letters from the Claimants Representative Group since Easter seeking background information on claims volumes. The subject has also been discussed at the regular Operation and Monitoring meetings between the parties. A formal proposal has not yet been submitted to the Department.

Nutritional Supplements

Mr. Hawkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations to EU Commission officials she has made on behalf of UK businesses in relation to plans for a draft Directive on nutritional supplements for sports competitors; and if she will make a statement. [175281]

Ms Hewitt [holding answer 24 May 2004]: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health on 25 May 2004, Official Report, column 1605W.

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