Bovine Immune Deficiency Virus

HC Deb 19 June 1996 vol 279 cc498-9W

Mr. Redmond

To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) if he will list the breeds of livestock in which cases of bovine immune deficiency virus have been diagnosed; and if he will make a statement; [32906]

(2) if he will list for each of the last four years, and for this year to date, the number of cases of bovine immune deficiency virus that have been diagnosed in (a) the United Kingdom and (b) other European Union countries. [32905]

Mrs. Browning

Bovine immune deficiency-like virus has not been confirmed in the United Kingdom this year or during the preceding four years.

BIV is not a notifiable disease under EU legislation and it is not a condition that is included in either list A or B of the Office International des Epizooties code list. We do not therefore have information on the number of BIV cases that have been diagnosed in other European countries. The results of the first surveys carried out in France and Germany for BIV have been published in the last two years and they indicated that BIV was present in both countries.