§ The Countess of Marasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether a slaughterhouse owner should be prosecuted for an error on the part of one of his staff which gives rise to an alleged offence under the Fresh Meat (Hygiene and Inspection) Regulations or the Specified Risk Materials Regulations if officials of the Meat Hygiene Service are not prosecuted for their errors which also give rise to alleged offences under the same regulations. [HL3013]
§ The Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Lord Donoughue)It is the responsibility of the occupier to ensure compliance with the provisions of the Fresh Meat (Hygiene and Inspection) Regulations 1995 and the Specified Risk Material Regulations 1997 within a slaughterhouse. The Meat Hygiene Service has an independent supervisory and enforcement role and therefore cannot be held responsible for any failure to comply with these regulations on the part of the occupier.
§ Lord Addingtonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether it expects the forthcoming closure of a large number of slaughterhouses, as a result of the costs of financing increased veterinary hours, to be followed by an increase in illegal slaughtering; and what measures are proposed to detect and combat this. [HL3032]
§ Lord DonoughueClosure of slaughterhouses takes place for many different reasons. If there is an increase in illegal slaughtering my department will seek to take enforcement action to prevent it.
The Earl of Denbighasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether there is any statutory prohibition on the use of knife scabbards in slaughterhouse operations. [HL3042]
§ Lord DonoughueNo. However, because scabbards can act as dirt traps their use is discouraged, other than for health and safety reasons (eg in carrying knives between work stations). It is considered good practice to sterilise a knife after removal from a scabbard and before use on fresh meat.
The Earl of Denbighasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether it is the practice of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to initiate prosecutions of slaughterhouse owners or operators for alleged breaches of Specified Risk Material Regulations when there is no history of any previous offences and the alleged breaches arise from genuine mistakes in circumstances where the incident is unlikely to be repeated. [HL3043]
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§ Lord DonoughueIt is the Government's policy to bring a prosecution for an offence under the Specified Risk Material Regulations 1997 in any case in which it is considered that the evidence is sufficient and that it is in the public interest so to do. Part of that consideration necessarily includes any defences or mitigation that the prospective defendant might advance.
The Earl of Denbighasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether public safety is prejudiced if a slaughterhouse operator fails to stain a sheep's head in the prescribed manner, immediately on its removal, when the article is to be destroyed in an incinerator situated on the premises. [HL3044]
§ Lord DonoughueSpecified risk material (SRM, which includes sheep's heads) is required to be stained in order to ensure that all such material is disposed of properly and cannot be diverted into the human food or animal feed chains. Such a control remains necessary where SRM is removed and incinerated on the same premises because there would still be a risk that SRM could be diverted before incineration actually takes place.
§ Lord HolmPatrickasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether official veterinary surgeons are entitled to require the provision of pest-proof sealed doors in slaughterhalls at the point of entry from lairages. [HL3085]
§ Lord DonoughueNo. It is not possible to provide complete pest-proofing between the lairage and slaughterhall.
§ The Earl of Northeskasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they include as a benefit of British membership of the European Union the closure of formerly profitable and well-founded slaughterhouses on the sole grounds that their owners and operators cannot afford to meet the costs of 100 per cent veterinary inspection. HL3092
§ Lord DonoughueNo.
§ Lord Shepherdasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many inspections of slaughterhouses and cutting plants by European Union Commission officials from the Food and Veterinary Office were made in the last financial year. [HL3020]
§ Lord DonoughueIn the period April 1998 to March 1999 the European Commission's Food and Veterinary Office carried out two inspection visits (June 1998 and September 1998) to the United Kingdom on controls in fresh (red) meat establishments under Directive 64/433/EEC.
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§ Lord Shepherdasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether, following inspections of abattoirs by European Union Commission officials from the Food and Veterinary Office, slaughterhouse owners and operators are entitled to see copies of any reports made in respect of their premises. [HL3019]
§ Lord DonoughueYes. In any event, the management at each premises visited by the Food and Veterinary Office (FVO) are informed at the time of the inspection of any observations the FVO inspectors may have.
§ Lord Shepherdasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether slaughterhouse owners and operators should be able to rely upon their official veterinary surgeons to provide advice on compliance with the Fresh Meat (Hygiene and Inspection) Regulations 1995 and other regulations which apply to their premises; and [HL3017]
Whether they will define the term "advice" where it relates to official veterinary surgeons and their relationship with slaughterhouse owners and operators; and whether that definition encompasses more than the identification of non-compliance with relevant regulations. [HL3018]
§ Lord DonoughueOfficial veterinary surgeons of the Meat Hygiene Service (MHS) have a responsibility to take fair and effective enforcement action in order to obtain compliance in licensed meat plants with the legislation for which the MHS is the enforcement authority. In line with the MHS hierarchy of enforcement, such action may include the provision of informal advice (written and verbal) to slaughterhouse owners and operators on both statutory requirements and best practice.
§ Lord Shepherdasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many requests for information on the interpretation of EC Directive 91/497/EEC were made by officials of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Meat Hygiene Service to the European Union Commission in the last financial year. [HL3015]
§ Lord DonoughueTwo. The first related to the frequency of veterinary supervision required for licensed cold stores and the second to the level and frequency of supervision required for low throughput (permanently derogated) slaughterhouses and cutting plants.