§ Mr. PatersonTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether she is required to take into account the application of the precautionary principle in assessing the need to make orders under section 29 of the Animal Health Act 1981 to reduce the risk to human health of any disease or organism carried in animals. [157948]
§ Mr. BradshawAlthough there is no universally accepted definition, the Government are committed to using the precautionary principle, which is included in the 1992 Rio Declaration on Environment and Development. The precautionary principle is one of 10 principles that guide the Government's approach to sustainable development, on which Defra takes the lead. The outline Animal Health and Welfare Strategy issued last July also confirmed that all Government decisions on animal health and welfare should be guided by the precautionary principle.