Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-02-05-Speech-2-283"
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"en.20020205.13.2-283"2
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"Madam President, I should like to begin by congratulating the rapporteur, Mr Olsson, on his excellent work in compiling this report. As a farmer myself, and someone who had a beef herd, I can testify to the wholesale damage and destruction that BSE has done – not only to the beef industry in my own country, but also in Member States throughout the Union. So I welcome his efforts in fighting BSE.
This is a scourge that we must defeat across the whole of Europe. I welcome any moves that will strengthen the efforts already made in the UK and by the Commission to stamp out BSE. However, the report also raises some serious questions that are to be addressed if we are to maintain the efforts to improve food safety.
Firstly, I do not believe that the whole-herd slaughter policy has any scientific base for adoption. BSE is not a contagious disease and cannot be spread between cattle. As we have seen with foot-and-mouth, to adopt the scatter-gun approach to disease control policy of mass culling does nothing to instil confidence in the consumer and only serves to spread further concern. In fact, if a farmer has to lose his whole herd for one case of BSE he may be less inclined to declare the animal and may bury it instead. I ask Commissioner Byrne to review the whole slaughter policy for BSE in the EU.
Secondly, there have recently been worrying cases in the UK of beef being illegally imported from Ireland, which breaches the UK's very strict regulations. In the UK at present we have a scheme in place which prohibits beef over 30 months from entering the food chain. In one recent case, beef over 30 months from a plant in Cork was shipped illegally for processing and then resale within the UK. It is a testament to the tough and stringent controls in place in my own country that this particular breach was picked up so quickly and effectively. But I call on the Commission and other Member States to ensure that their own authorities are as vigilant against this dangerous trade.
Finally, there have been far too many cases of meat containing specified risk material being exported into the United Kingdom. The growing number of cases and the fact that they come from so many Member States – Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain and Ireland, to name but a few – must be a huge concern for us all. I am not seeking to apportion blame in any way, but if we wish to see the farming industry – particularly the beef industry – flourish in Europe, we must all shoulder the responsibility to enforce the rules.
What I am calling for is a mood of resilience and an ardour to implement the EU regulations and the tough controls that we have in place, and for us to work together to improve the inspection regimes in all Member States. I call upon the Commission to take a more robust attitude to the enforcement of this regulation.
We have found in the United Kingdom that the only way to rebuild the beef industry is to rebuild consumer confidence. We will only do that by guaranteeing the public a safe product that they can trust."@en1
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