§ 64. Sir A. Hurdasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food haw many of the primary outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease occurring in Great Britain during the past five years his advisers have attributed to infection brought by South American meat, and how many to infection brought by migrating birds from the Continent; and in how many cases it has not been possible to establish the probable agent of infection.
§ Mr. SoamesDuring the five years to 1959, 62 primary outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease have been attributed by my department to infected South American meat and 46 to infection brought from the Continent, probably by birds. The origin of the remaining 12 outbreaks was obscure.
§ 65. Mr. Woodnuttasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, as representing the Minister for Science, what is the annual cost to Her Majesty's Government of the Foot-and-Mouth Research Institute, Pirbright; and whether the Institute is conducting research into the possibility of building up immunity by balancing mineral deposits in soil.
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§ Mr. SoamesThe annual cost, excluding capital expenditure, is about £300,000. The answer to the second part of the Question is "No".
§ Mr. Speirasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will state the reasons why he considers it desirable compulsorily to slaughter, not only animals infected with foot-and-mouth disease, but also those which are contacts; and what has been the cost of compensation, on an annual average, during the past 10 years.
§ Mr. SoamesFoot-and-mouth disease is extremely infectious and it is necessary to slaughter animals which have been in contact with the disease in order to reduce the risk of further spread. The Gowers Committee, which studied the problem and reported in 1954, fully endorsed this policy.
The average cost of compensation for the whole of Great Britain over the last 10 years has been £592,000 annually.
§ Mr. Speirasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether it has now been possible to trace the origin of the recent outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease in the county of Northumberland.
§ Mr. SoamesThe origin has not been traced despite exhaustive inquiries. The passage of lime means, I am afraid, that it is now unlikely to be discovered.
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§ Sir A. Hurdasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a further statement on the foot-and-mouth situation; whether the first outbreak in the present series spreading from England to Scotland occurred in pigs fed on swill; and if the origin of the infection has now been traced.
§ Mr. SoamesSince 6th November and up to midnight yesterday 193 outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease have been confirmed. Of these 79 have been in East Anglia, 27 in the North and North-East of England, 20 in the Midlands 1 in the Home Counties and 66 in Scotland. The numbers of stock to be compulsorily slaughtered total 13,220 cattle, 16,410 sheep and 5,660 pigs.
There is still no evidence that the present series of outbreaks can be definitely attributed to the use of infected swill or waste food. It now seems unlikely that the origin will be discovered because of the passage of time.
ONE-BEDROOM DWELLINGS COMPLETED, OR UNDER CONSTRUCTION, BY LOCAL AUTHORITIES IN ENGLAND AND WALES, APRIL, 1945–31ST OCTOBER, 1960 Region Total number of one-bedroom dwellings completed or under construction Completions April, 1945 to 31st October, 1960 Under construction at 31st October, 1960 Houses Flats Houses Flats Northern … … … 18,754 9,173 6,286 680 2,615 East and West Ridings … 25,310 6,249 13,879 961 4,221 North Midlands … … 14,634 6,538 4,802 1,746 1,548 Eastern … … … 17,780 5,944 8,883 576 2,377 London … … … … 51,857 4,327 41,869 223 5,438 Southern … … … 12,782 4,006 6,169 531 2,076 South Western … … … 14,003 3,547 7,657 1,211 1,588 Wales … … … … 5,724 1,795 2,236 456 1,237 Midlands … … … 28,686 6,785 17,003 979 3,919 North Western … … 33,920 10,399 18,225 889 4,407 South Eastern … … … 13,963 3,642 8,336 445 1,540 Total … … … 237,413 62,405 135,345 8,697 30,966
§ 69. Mr. Swinglerasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs how many old people's bungalows have been constructed or are under construction in Staffordshire; and what grants his Department has paid towards the scheme.
§ Mr. H. BrookeUp to 31st October, housing authorities in Staffordshire had built 11,026 one-bedroom dwellings