§ Mr. David Clarkasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what was 296W the number of outbreaks of fowl pest in each of the ridings of Yorkshire in 1972; and if he will make a statement on the disparities.
§ Mrs. FennerThe number of outbreaks of Newcastle disease (Fowl Pest) in Yorkshire in 1972 was 13 in the East Riding, 12 in the North Riding and 39 in the West Riding.
Sporadic outbreaks of the disease occurred throughout the year in various parts of the East Riding. These occurred mostly in small flocks that were either unvaccinated or part vaccinated only. The pattern was similar in the North Riding during the first six months of the year, but no outbreaks occurred there during the second half of the year.
In the West Riding, however, there was a build-up of infection in the mainly urban south-west part of the county which commenced towards the end of 1971 and continued into the first six months of 1972. A total of 33 outbreaks occurred during this period, including 25 in 1972. The pattern for the remainder of the county was similar to that for the other ridings.