§ Mr. Templeasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science in view of the fact that 1967 was an exceptional year for mushrooms in areas of the country now affected by foot-and-mouth disease, what steps he has taken to find out what connection there is between exceptional years of mushrooms and foot-and-mouth epidemics; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Gordon WalkerI am advised that the weather conditions that are favourable to the growth of wild mushrooms—mild, damp, autumn conditions—would also he suitable for the rapid spread of foot-and-mouth disease. There is no reason to suppose a more direct connection between the two; the known mechanisms for the spread of the disease are quite sufficient to account for the present epidemic.
§ Mr. Templeasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what evidence has been given to him by virologists on the extent to which the present strain of O.1 foot-and-mouth virus has been affected by vaccination practices of countries overseas where the disease is endemic.
§ Mr. Gordon WalkerI am advised that, while it is theoretically possible for a virus to be modified, in respect of its power to spread by passage through a vaccinated animal, there is no evidence that this has ever occurred with foot-and-mouth virus.