§ Mr. DrewTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average time is for compensation payments for those holdings that(a) lost stock, (b) lost fodder and (c) bore the costs of disinfecting their premises due to foot and mouth. [1672]
§ Mr. Morley[holding answer 3 July 2001]: I recognise that there have been delays in the payment of compensation to farmers whose animals have been compulsorily slaughtered because of foot and mouth disease, and that when the disease was at its peak during April and May these delays could be extensive. However, the time taken to pay compensation claims has been reduced and we are now in a position to pay claims within three weeks of receiving complete documentation.
Information on average payment times for compensation for anything, including fodder, seized by the Department for the purpose of preventing the spread of foot and mouth disease, and payment times for the costs of cleansing and disinfecting affected farm premises where farmers have chosen to do this work themselves under the Department's supervision could be obtained only at disproportionate cost because of the number of payments involved and the fact that the records are not held centrally.
166W
§ David MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many samples of deer have been taken for foot and mouth disease analysis; and how many have tested(a) positive and (b) negative. [3244]
§ Mr. MorleyAs of 2 July more than 60 samples have been submitted to the Institute of Animal Health for testing from various parts of England and Scotland. All have tested negative for evidence of the foot and mouth virus, antigens or antibodies.
§ David MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of the national(a) flock of sheep and (b) herd of cattle has been culled as a result of the slaughter eradication policy. [2554]
§ Mr. MorleyThe numbers of sheep and cattle that have been compulsorily slaughtered as a result of the cull on premises affected by foot and mouth disease (FMD) in Great Britain are as follows:
Sheep Cattle Number of animals slaughtered as a result of FMD as at 4 July 2001 2,794,000 547,000 Number of animals in Great Britain as per June 2000 Agricultural Census 39,520,000 9,456,000 Percentage of national flock/herd slaughtered 7 6
§ David MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many foot and mouth disease carcases are being stored pending rendering. [2756]
§ Mr. MorleyNo carcases are stored pending rendering. Most carcases are rendered on the day that they are delivered to the plant. Sometimes for operational reasons carcases may be held overnight at plants before being rendered on the following day or held overnight at carcase collection centres before being delivered to rendering plants. However, most carcases will be rendered within 24 hours of delivery to the plant.
§ David MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her estimate is of(a) the tonnage of ash to he taken away from and (b) the number of locations of pyre sites in Cumbria. [2753]
§ Mr. MorleyAsh will only be removed from pyre sites in cases where it is not possible to bury it on site. We estimate that there are at least 45 pyre sites in Cumbria that fall into this category. Our initial estimate of the total amount of ash that will have to be removed from these sites is in the region of 10,000 tonnes.
§ David MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on what dates over the last 10 years, MAFF/DEFRA contingency plans for foot and mouth disease were submitted to the EU or DoE/DETR. [2761]
§ Mr. MorleyThe Great Britain contingency plan for foot and mouth disease, as required by Article 5 of Council Directive 90/423, in line with the criteria set out in the Commission Decision 91/42/EEC, was submitted to the EU in 1991 and approved by Commission Decision 93/455/EEC.
167WThe first revision of the plan was in July 2000 and a copy was sent to the EU.
§ David MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what consideration the Government have given to varying compensatory valuations at different stages of the foot and mouth outbreak. [2546]
§ Mr. MorleyFor compensation purposes, the Animal Health Act 1981 stipulates the value of an animal as being its value immediately before it became affected with foot and mouth disease or, if not so affected, its value immediately before it was slaughtered. Standard valuations were set out in regulations in order to speed up the slaughter process, but farmers retained the right to request an individual valuation of their stock.
§ David MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her assessment is of when foot and mouth disease will be eradicated in the United Kingdom. [2551]
§ Mr. MorleyI refer the right hon. Gentleman to the answer given to him on 10 July 2001,Official Report, column 492W.
§ David MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on what dates over the last 20 years divisions or regions of MAFF/DEFRA were tested or updated on the contingency plans for foot and mouth disease. [2800]
§ Mr. MorleyThe 23 Animal Health Divisional Offices have been required to hold one contingency planning exercise each year and to update their plans accordingly.
The 1999–2000, 25 such exercises were held and in 1998–99 there were 18 held. Prior to these dates, figures are not readily available.
§ David MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will publish the protocols and guidance notes for the disinfection of all buildings, including sheds with cobbled floor and slurry pits, following an outbreak of foot and mouth disease. [2766]
§ Mr. MorleyGuidance for farmers and contractors on health and safety issues related to cleansing and disinfection are available on the DEFRA website at the following address: http://defraweb/footandmouth/farmers/during/safety. asp.
§ David MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many animals were killed as part of the 3 km cull in Cumbria. [2548]
§ Mr. MorleyIn Cumbria 504,160 animals were slaughtered in the 3 km cull.
§ David MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many cases of foot and mouth have been detected because of surveillance visits by vets from her Department. [3420]
§ Mr. MorleyAs at 11 July, 239 infected premises in Great Britain were confirmed as a result of such surveillance visits.
§ David MacleanTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many(a) cattle and (b) sheep, on how many farms in (i) England and 168W (ii) Cumbria, have been have been slaughtered because they were contiguous to infected premises; and how many of those tested negative for foot and mouth disease. [3445]
§ Mr. MorleyAs of 11 July, the numbers of cattle and sheep slaughtered on Contiguous Premises (CPs) and numbers of CPs are shown in the table.
England Cumbria Number of CPs 2,597 470 Cattle slaughtered 137,800 22,225 Sheep slaughtered 689,342 124,568 The following table shows, of those figures above, the numbers of CPs which returned a negative laboratory test result, and the numbers of cattle and sheep slaughtered on those premises.
England Cumbria Number of CPs 175 45 Cattle slaughtered 11,189 2,798 Sheep slaughtered 75,644 21,495 A negative test result does not necessarily mean that the premises was free from disease. For instance, positive results may not be produced from tests on blood or tissue taken when the disease is in later stages or from newly infected animals where antibodies have not yet developed.
§ Mr. Gordon PrenticeTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many complaints she has received from(a) organisations and (b) members of the public about the conduct of the military in assisting with the foot and mouth cull. [1487]
§ Mr. Morley[holding answer 2 July 2001]: Complaints about the conduct of the military are likely to have been addressed to a number of different points within DEFRA and also the Ministry of Defence. Although the exact number of complaints is not known, in either Department, it is not thought to be high. Indeed, the armed forces were the subject of much praise from farmers and members of the public for their extremely valuable contribution towards the fight against foot and mouth disease.
§ Mr. LuffTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps she takes to ensure consistency in the advice her Department is offering to farmers on biosecurity relating to foot and mouth disease with the advice it is offering to county councils about the re-opening of footpaths; and if she will make a statement. [1988]
§ Mr. MorleyThe Government's top priority has always been to eradicate the disease. Veterinary advice is that the main way the disease is being spread is by those working with or close to animals not taking appropriate biosecurity measures. At every opportunity we have emphasised the need for everyone consistently to take stringent precautions to avoid further spread.
However for those who have had no contact with animals or affected premises for at least seven days, the risk is considerably lower. The advice to walkers is consistent with the biosecurity message and includes: observe closed signs; use disinfectant troughs where provided; keep your dog on a lead where there are 169W livestock; and do not leave waste food around. Footpaths within a 3 km protection zone around infected premises should normally remain closed.
§ Mr. EvansTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what has been the cost to date of the operation to eradicate foot and mouth in the Ribble Valley. [1077]
§ Mr. MorleyThe information is not available in the form requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. For information relating to the cost of the outbreak as a whole to the Department, I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given to him on 11 July 2001,Official Report, column 562W.