§ Lord Seafordasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many abattoirs have been closed since November 1998; and how many they anticipate will close in the coming 12 months. [HL4402]
§ The Minister of State, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Baroness Hayman)The Meat Hygiene and Inspection Regulations provide for 71WA licences to be revoked for a number of different reasons. These include where premises either fail to comply with hygiene requirements or cease operating for commercial reasons; and where the nature of the business has changed. Thirty-nine abattoirs in Great Britain producing fresh meat or poultry meat had their licences revoked between 1 November 1998 and 30 October 1999. Details of licence revocations are published in the Meat Hygiene Enforcement Report, which is placed in the Library of the House each month. It is not possible to forecast how many licences will be revoked over the next 12 months.