§ Mr. GillTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many veterinarians have been recruited by the Meat Hygiene Service from outside the United Kingdom. [57721]
§ Mr. RookerThe Meat Hygiene Service directly employs 14 Veterinary Surgeons from outside the United Kingdom. Of these, 10 are Citizens of other EU Member States and 4 are other Nationals.
The Meat Hygiene Service also contracts out Veterinary Services to Veterinary Agencies and Practices. 100 Citizens of other EU Member States and 4 other Nationals are employed in this way.
§ Mr. GillTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many veterinarians are employed by or contracted to the Meat Hygiene Service; and how many more will be necessary to comply with EU meat inspection directives. [57722]
§ Mr. RookerThe Meat Hygiene Service directly employs 55 Veterinary Surgeons at present. Veterinary Agencies and Practices also currently supply the Meat Hygiene Service with veterinary services under contract with 521 (172 on a full time equivalent basis) Official Veterinary Surgeons under contract.
The precise number of additional veterinarians required to bring supervision levels at licensed premises in Great Britain into line with the requirements of the EU Directives will depend on several factors, including the number of premises to be supervised. However, based on trends in the industry, the Meat Hygiene Service has estimated that some 300 to 400 additional veterinarians may be required.