Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies Regulations 2006

My Lords, once again I declare my interest as a farmer and as a dairy producer of milk. I would like to thank my noble friend Lady Mar for giving us the chance of this debate and for the rigorous way in which she examined the regulations. I welcome the element of consolidation included in the regulations and in general the control and eradication provisions, subject always to the application of the most recent, relevant and accepted science, a point my noble friend made so forcefully. I agree with her that it is more than possible that the powers given to inspectors are too wide; in particular inspectors should be required to return all records taken away within a reasonable time. That is not written in the order. Going a little further, Her Majesty’s Government should ensure that there are sufficient abattoirs to serve all the main livestock areas in the country. That is necessary both for healthy and for fallen and casualty stock following the concentration that has been going on in recent years in places of slaughter. It is also necessary both on economic and on animal welfare grounds. Will the Government therefore put the matter firmly on the agendas of rural development agencies and of the other quangos supposed to be addressing rural problems? RDAs could be given the task of assisting new, small and medium-sized abattoirs to open in areas of need. I turn to a wider point concerning animal health. Is there anyone in the Cabinet who appreciates just how heavy has been the impact of cattle diseases on farming and therefore on the whole of the rural economy? Britain used to be the livestock rearing place of the whole world. Successive epidemics of BSE, foot and mouth disease and TB have ended that, alas. The general public have been momentarily alarmed by media reports of animals with diseases and often of the sluggish official responses. But, I ask, how many people really understand the cumulative effect of those outbreaks? There is plenty of evidence in terms of farmers who have committed suicide, for example, and of the continuing consolidation into ever-larger farms. I have already referred to TB, now very prevalent in cattle in the south and south-west of England and in all Welsh border counties. A decision will soon have to be taken about eradicating badgers around the TB hotspots for cattle. Do we want to kill badgers or to go on killing cows, only to have the healthy remaining stock reinfected? The present policy is costing the country many millions as well as disrupting production and breeding. Will the Government also investigate whether rats can act as TB transmitters; for example, between badgers and the cattle themselves? I end by asking a cautionary question. Are we as fully prepared as we can be for Asian bird flu? It is creeping nearer to us all the time. It raises issues of possible vaccination, which could turn out to be important for animal health much more widely across the board.