§ Mr. LuffTo ask the Prime Minister prior to his decision on the nature and terms of reference of an inquiry into foot and mouth disease, if he will consult(a) parish, district and county councils in affected areas, (b) representatives of the tourist industry, (c) animal welfare organisations, (d) the NFU, CLA and other farming organisations and (e) hon. Members. [6434]
§ The Prime MinisterOn 9 August I announced three independent inquiries into the 2001 outbreak of foot and mouth disease.
The inquiries, which will report to me and my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, are:
an inquiry into the lessons to be learned from the foot and mouth disease outbreak of 2001 and the way the Government should handle any future major animal disease outbreak, to be chaired by Dr. lain Anderson;a scientific review by the Royal Society of questions relating to the transmission, prevention and control of the epidemic of infectious disease in livestock, committee to be chaired by Sir Brian Follett FRS; anda policy commission on the future of farming and food to be chaired by Sir Don Curry.The chairs of the three inquiries will set their own working methods, working in an open and inclusive manner involving a wide range of stakeholders.