§ Mr. MorleyTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) whether he intends to introduce a compulsory slaughter policy with compensation for herds affected, or suspected of being affected by blue ear pig disease;
(2) whether he will ban all live pig imports from countries where blue ear pig disease has been confirmed;
(3) what steps he is taking to protect the United Kingdom pig industry from blue ear pig disease.
§ Mr. MacleanUntil the causative agent is identified, there is no way of knowing if slaughtering herds would be an effective means of controlling the disease. Commission decision 91/237/EEC of 25 April prohibits exports of pigs for breeding or production from infected farms and municipalities in those member states where the disease has been confirmed. No live pigs are being imported from affected countries. There are no approved foot and mouth disease quarantine premises for pigs and there has been no trade interest in such imports.