§ Mr. Onslowasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will now make a statement about the final report of the Committee of Inquiry on Rabies.
§ Mr. PriorThe Final Report of the Committee of Inquiry on Rabies is published today. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland and I would like to thank Mr. Waterhouse and his Committee for carrying out this very substantial task so thoroughly. The Committee has drawn attention to the growing risk of importing rabies into Great Britain, and we accept the need to take further action to protect this country against it. The Committee's many and detailed recommendations are very wide-ranging, affecting a number of interests. But rabies is a very serious disease, whose introduction on any scale into this country could have major repercussions on public health and on the cost of our preventive measures. Some of the recommendations have already been implemented, including all the major proposals in the Interim Report. We are today initiating consultations with the main interests concerned on the remainder.