§ Mr. Charles KennedyTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if SEAC has investigated possible links between(a) Phosmet and (b) other organophosphate compounds and BSE; and if he will make a statement. [24696]
Dr. John Cunningham[holding answer 26 January 1998]: At a meeting on 24 October 1997, SEAC considered further papers relevant to the hypothesis that the organophosphate (OP), Phosmet, is in some way causally linked to the BSE epidemic. It was noted that the epidemiological evidence is better accounted for by the view that the BSE epidemic is due to the widespread use of animal feed contaminated with the transmissible agent of BSE than by the organophosphate theory. The Committee concluded that experimental evidence would be required to justify further consideration of a role for organophosphates in the epidemiology of BSE.