HC Deb 20 November 1968 vol 773 cc1287-8
45. Mr. Bryant Godman Irvine

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will introduce a financial incentive for brucella-free herds.

Mr. John Mackie

The Brucellosis (Accredited Herds) Scheme is making satisfactory progress and I can see no need for any further incentive.

Mr. Irvine

That is not the view throughout the farming community. Farmers feel that the time has come when some financial incentive similar to the tuberculosis scheme should be introduced.

Mr. Mackie

The fact is that 2,300 herds are now accredited, so farmers evidently think there is something in it. The present figure for animals in accredited herds is 200,000, and that is about the speed at which we can get on with the job. The incentives are good when one realises that anybody with an accredited herd retailing milk today gets a better payment for it. There is also the incentive of having a disease-free herd; then in the near future the person concerned will get a better price for his cattle.

Dr. John Dunwoody

Does my hon. Friend agree that the rapid elimination of brucella from the cattle herds of this country could have a significant effect on human health in our rural areas? For that reason, will he look again at the possibility of speeding up the elimination of this debilitating disease?

Mr. Mackie

We are convinced that the speed at which we are doing this is right, and it is working. If we were to spend £40 million to £50 million, that would be different. But if we did that we should be, first, short of milk, and, secondly, short of cattle.

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