§ MR. MAHONY (Meath, N.)asked the Chief Secretary to the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, Whether his attention has been called to the large areas proclaimed under the Contagious Diseases (Animals) Act in the Counties Louth and Meath; it so, whether he will state why the parishes of Tullyallen, Philinstown, and Ballymakenny, in the County Louth, and the parishes of Dowth and Donore, in County Meath, which, are several miles from the infected farms, have been proclaimed, and other parishes, which are much nearer to the infected farms, have not been proclaimed; whether it is usual in England to proclaim areas so far removed from the infected farms; whether the cases of pleuro-pneumonia in Louth and Meath have been directly traceable to animals brought from Dublin; and, whether the Government intend to take any decided steps to deal with the disease in the Dublin dairies?
THE PARLIAMENTARY UNDER SECRETARY (Colonel KING-HARMAN) (Kent, Isle of Thanet) (who replied) saidthe following telegram appears to afford a full reply to the hon. Member's Question:—
The areas referred to were necessarily large in order to make certain that, all cattle intended for shipment at the Port of Drogheda should be accompanied by a certificate of health from the place from which they were moved, in addition to examination by the Government Veterinary Inspector at Drogheda. I am not aware of the practice in England in declaring areas; but much larger areas have been declared by the English Privy Council. In some instances whole counties have been declared. There is a strong presumption that the outbreaks of pleuro-pneumonia in Louth and Meath are traceable to animals brought from Dublin, and the Drogheda Local Authority have made Regulations prohibiting the entry of cattle from the Dublin district into their union. As regards the Dublin dairies, there is in operation in the Dublin district a stringent order prohibiting the exportation of any Dublin dairy cattle, and restricting their sale in the Dublin Cattle Market except for slaughter. The closest observation is being paid to the whole district.
§ MR. COX (Clare, E.)asked, why it was inland districts were proclaimed, while places near the port of debarkation were not proclaimed?
§ COLONEL KING-HARMANsaid, the reason so large an area was declared infected westward was because in two cases cattle affected with pleuro-pneumonia, which had been slaughtered in England, had come from the Port of Drogheda, and one especially was traced to the house of a farmer in the western district of Drogheda, who had several farms in different parts of the county, and it was necessary to proclaim all the districts surrounding each one of these farms. As to the reason why some parishes were not proclaimed which were nearer, the answer was that the Port of Drogheda was situated in one of those parishes, and it would cause great inconvenience, amounting practically to a closing of the port, to proclaim that parish.
§ MR. COXsaid, he should raise the Question on the Estimates, and, in the meantime, he called the attention of the right hon. and gallant Gentleman to the map, which showed the vagaries of the Privy Council.
§ COLONEL KING-HARMANI have seen the map, and know it perfectly.