§ Lieut.-Colonel MURROUGH WILSONasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Agriculture whether he is aware of the serious effect on the export trade of pedigree stock caused by the existence of foot-and-mouth disease in so many parts of the country; whether he is satisfied that all the necessary measures are being taken to stamp out the disease; and, if not, what other steps he proposes to take?
Sir A. BOSCAWENI am well aware of the serious effect on the export trade of pedigree stock caused by the existence of foot-and-mouth disease in this country, and this consideration is one of the most important factors in determining the policy of the Ministry in dealing with the disease by the immediate slaughter of the affected and in-contact stock. All countries, with the exception of the United States and Canada, require certificates testifying that a radius of about fifteen miles from the premises on which the 1943W animals have been located has been free from the disease for a certain period. The speed with which infection can be eliminated from any district by the stamping-out process has, therefore, an important bearing on the date on which export of animals from that particular district can be resumed.