§ Mr. Martyn JonesTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1) how many cases of bovine immunodeficiency virus disease have been notified to her Department in the last three years; and if she will make a statement;
(2) what evidence she has that the bovine immunodeficiency virus was introduced into the United Kingdom in infected cattle; and if she will make a statement.
§ Mr. SoamesIt is not compulsory to notify cases of bovine immunodeficiency virus to the Department or other authority. A limited investigation in 1990 by the Department's central veterinary laboratory—CVL—suggested there had been a low prevalence of infection in cattle in Great Britain for some time. We have no information on the original source of infection in Great Britian. No cases of disease caused by bovine immunodeficiency virus have been confirmed by the Department in the last three years. It is too early to speculate what role, if any, bovine immunodeficiency virus has played on a particular farm under investigation in Cheshire.