Beef on the Bone

HC Deb 17 December 1998 vol 322 cc1085-7

5. Mr. John Greenway (Ryedale)

When he expects to end the ban on beef on the bone. [62989]

The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Mr. Nick Brown)

I am afraid that I am not going to be able to give the hon. Gentleman the reply that he is probably hoping for, so he will have to be content with this one. I am currently awaiting advice from the chief medical officer. When I receive that advice, I shall give it full and urgent consideration in consultation with my ministerial colleagues, and make an announcement as soon as possible. I am afraid that that is the best I can do for the hon. Gentleman.

Mr. Greenway

In the same spirit of good will, may I first thank the right hon. Gentleman on behalf of Ryedale beef producers for his efforts in getting the beef export ban lifted? We appreciate what a difficult task that was. I suspect that, had he been able to do so, he would have liked to give me the answer that I was hoping for. Notwithstanding that, does he recognise that the continuation of the ban of beef on the bone is not helping in the task of persuading European consumers to choose to buy British beef, and that consumers in Britain simply want the opportunity to choose to buy not just British beef but British beef on the bone?

Mr. Brown

Once the date-based export scheme is up and running, the beef that we will be able to sell in Europe is deboned beef. It is that beef which is specifically covered by the scheme arising from the agreement made at Florence. As for the domestic market, surely the most important thing is consumer confidence. As I have said before, I never expected the domestic beef-on-the-bone ban to endure for ever—it was not intended to do so. However, when it is lifted—this is the source of the disagreement—it must be on the basis of medical advice, not on the basis of political decision making.

Mr. Eric Martlew (Carlisle)

I look forward to the beef-on-the-bone ban being lifted, but may I draw my right hon. Friend's attention to a wholly unjustified ban, namely the ban on dairy products, mainly by some countries in the middle east? That ban was a major factor in the loss of 40 jobs in my constituency last week. Will he make urgent representations to those countries to have that ban lifted?

Mr. Brown

I understand that the particular country to which my hon. Friend refers is Saudi Arabia. We are making urgent representations to that country on that matter.

Mr. Charles Kennedy (Ross, Skye and Inverness, West)

Does the right hon. Gentleman agree that, as and when he receives satisfactory reports and is able to bring to the House the necessary measures to lift the ban on beef on the bone, there will undoubtedly be all-party support for such a move, in a way that there certainly was not for the imposition of the ban, even though there was a hint of it when the former Conservative Minister supported it—something that those currently on the Opposition Front Bench like to forget? As and when the ban is lifted, will the right hon. Gentleman undertake to publish a breakdown of the local authority and court costs to the public purse of the prosecutions achieved or just pursued, so that we can put into not only a political but a financial context just what a farce this entire ban has been?

Mr. Brown

I cannot accept the thrust of the hon. Gentleman's question. It is important that regulations pertaining to food safety and food standards are enforced. I cannot enforce just the ones with which the hon. Gentleman agrees and turn a blind eye to those with which he does not agree. He may discover the information that he requires by tabling a parliamentary question; there are no secrets in this matter. While the ban is imposed, my Department is obliged to enforce it.

Mr. David Drew (Stroud)

My right hon. Friend is absolutely right to insist on medical reasons for lifting the beef-on-the-bone ban. That is the only way in which foreign customers will be encouraged to buy British beef. In the meantime, will he ensure that EU inspectors are able to see the different means by which we are able to export, so that exports can be reinstated as soon as possible?

Mr. Brown

I thank my hon. Friend for that question. The date-based export scheme is of course subject to a Commission inspection. In bilateral talks with different Agriculture Ministers in different countries in order to talk them through what the Government are doing not only to get the scheme up and running but to protect public health in this country, I have invited Ministers or their officials not only to come to this country but to join technical discussions with my Department's officials. We have absolutely nothing to hide. The date-based export scheme will put on international markets beef that is among some of the safest in the world.

Mr. James Paice (South-East Cambridgeshire)

Will the Minister confirm that the ban on the export of tallow was lifted at the Florence summit, subject only to inspections by the Commission? Is he aware that those inspections have still not taken place—some two years later? What will he do to make absolutely sure that inspections necessary for lifting the export ban occur, so that a reasonable timetable can be met for re-exporting the high-quality beef, which he rightly praises?

Mr. Brown

The hon. Gentleman is right to say that questions relating to tallow are still under discussion with the Commission. We are proceeding on a pretty set timetable for the date-based export scheme. I am determined that it will be up and running by the spring. From discussions that my officials have had with the Commission, we have no reason at all to believe that there will be any delay in the Commission inspection, which, as he rightly points out, is crucial to getting the scheme up and running. There is no need for any further political clearance; the issue does not have to go back to the Council of Ministers—and I am pleased about that. However, it is necessary that the Commission reports that the scheme is up and running, as we said it would be. I am certain that we can get through the inspection, although, of course, the matter must not be taken lightly.

Mr. Bob Blizzard (Waveney)

Were not the only alternatives to the swift and decisive action that the Government took in banning beef on the bone either to try to sweep the matter under the carpet or to let it drift on, week after week, inviting speculation about the safety of beef on the bone, and thereby undermining confidence in the entire beef industry—in fact, the sort of fiasco that occurred under the previous Government, which is being revealed in the BSE inquiry? Did not such swift and decisive action help us achieve the removal of the worldwide ban on British beef?

Mr. Brown

Having seen the papers that were put in front of my predecessor before he made his decision to impose the beef-on-the-bone ban, I do not think that he had very much choice in the matter. I think that the decision was right. The Government are absolutely determined to put the safety of the public at the forefront of decision making in this area. It was never intended that the ban would be for ever. When it is raised, it will be as a result of medical advice and not political decision making.