Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies Regulations 2006

My Lords, I am advised that they will. So I have dealt with inspectors as I intended. The EU regulation sets out the scope for TSE control and eradication action. Where it is necessary to kill animals for control purposes, the EU regulation specifies which animals must be killed. Our national regulations give us the power only to deliver these requirements. The detailed provisions in the schedules set out when the powers will be executed, but that does not mean that an inspector can require animals to be killed without good reason. Actions must be in accordance with the EU regulation and these regulations. Thus an inspector may exercise their powers only in the circumstances set out in the schedules and in the EU regulation. It is worth noting that the control measures set out in the EU regulation are currently being discussed within the context of the EU Commission’s strategy document, The TSE Roadmap. Changes to controls are being considered in several areas to reflect the encouraging reduction in BSE cases across Europe. We are actively involved in this process. It supports the proposal that, in a case in which scrapie has been confirmed and BSE has been ruled out, it should not be necessary to cull the affected flock. The UK supports the proposed tolerance for acceptable trace residues of fishmeal in ruminant feed. This will alleviate significant problems which requirements for strictly dedicated production cause until the political issues of lifting the ban on fishmeal in ruminant feed are resolved in the European Parliament. The noble Countess, Lady Mar, is a distinguished contributor on these issues, but there is a difference of opinion about the origins of BSE. Indeed, it is accepted that the origins may never be known. But I draw the House’s attention to the independent review carried out last year by Professor William Hill, who confirmed that the elimination of food-borne sources was a key to the eradication of BSE. He recommended risk-based controls, and that monitoring should be maintained on animals and feed. I shall return to answering some of the questions that have been asked today. The noble Countess mentioned what I believe is called the ““one before and two after”” rule. This is an EU rule, but I can announce that the Veterinary Laboratories Agency is carrying out a new risk assessment of this control. I hope that will give the House some satisfaction. The noble Countess expressed concern about goats. The EU regulation sets out the control measures that must be taken when scrapie is reported, and the provisions of the domestic regulations provide inspectors with powers to enforce them. We believe that the EU controls are disproportionate for cases of scrapie in goat herds that are dairy flocks, where animals are not sent for breeding. In such cases, we have applied controls pragmatically, restricting and monitoring affected herds rather than culling them. Other member states are carrying out similar actions in herds with confirmed cases of scrapie. The noble Countess, Lady Mar, and the noble Baroness, Lady Byford, talked about access for the Edinburgh scientists. I will answer that in the letter that I will write. The noble Baroness mentioned controls based on sound science. Controls are based on the best available science, and this is supported by the Government’s independent experts—the Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee. The noble Baroness also asked why there was no differentiation of penalties in these regulations. Our answer is that the legislation does not impose the penalties on individuals; the courts do. The penalty provisions set only maxima; that is all they can do. The courts have—they must have—a wide discretion when dealing with an individual case. So there is no inevitable lack of proportionality in any particular case.