§ Mr. CoxTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many reported cases of BSE there have been in each of the last six months; how many cattle have been killed; and from what number of farms in Scotland.
§ Mr. Michael ForsythThe information for Scotland for each of the last six available months is as follows:
Number reported Number slaughtered Number of farms December 1990 43 40 39 January 1991 76 72 65 February 1991 67 58 53 March 1991 73 59 59 April 1991 59 53 50 May 1991 48 30 28 The number of farms relates to animals slaughtered. Animals reported as suspected of being affected with the disease are normally held for a time for surveillance before slaughter. Final confirmation cannot be obtained until histopathological examination of brain tissues has been completed after death.