HL Deb 22 May 2003 vol 648 c106WA
Baroness Byford

asked Her Majesty's Government:

How many cattle have been slaughtered over the past five years as part of the campaign against tuberculosis. [HL2694]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Lord Whitty):

The information requested is given in the table below.

Number of cattle slaughtered in GB under TB control measures 1998–2002
Year Number of cattle slaughtered
1998 5,863
1999 6,772
2000 8,353
2001 5,916
2002 22,886

Note:

In 2001, the TB testing and control programme was largely suspended due to the Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) outbreak. Since testing resumed in 2002, resources have been concentrated on herds with overdue TB tests. The herds (and individual animals within the herds) would have had a longer period in which to contract the disease. Also the proportion of high risk herds being tested post-FMD is greater than that prior to the outbreak. As a result, the numbers of reactors identified and slaughtered in 2002 is not comparable to those identified and slaughtered in previous years.

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