§ 16. Mr. MorganTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what new evidence he has on the vertical transmission of bovine spongiform encephalopathy.
§ Mr. GummerThere is no evidence so far that maternal, that is dam to calf, transmission can take place. It does of course in sheep but not in any of the other species which may be affected by spongiform encephalopathy. We are conducting a major study, costing over £5 million, to determine the answer to this question.
§ Mr. McAvoyTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what precautions his Department has taken relating to the offspring of bovine spongiform encephalopathy-stricken cattle.
§ Mr. GummerDespite the fact that there is no evidence of maternal transmission, as a precautionary measure any suspect animal that is pregnant must be isolated during and for 72 hours after calving and the placenta and other material burnt or buried. The accommodation used must then be cleaned and disinfected. In addition, as part of the comprehensive epidemiological inquiry into every case of BSE, data are collected in relation to calves of BSE-affected cattle.
More generally, the consumer is fully protected because all suspect animals are slaughtered and destroyed and those offals which are most likely to harbour the BSE agent are banned from human consumption even in animals where there is no indication of the presence of BSE.