Written question asked by David Lidington (Conservative) on Monday, 9 April 2001, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 9 May 2001. It was answered by Baroness Quin (Labour) on Wednesday, 9 May 2001 on behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food

Question: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, how many appeals his Department has received from farmers against the slaughter of their livestock as part of his policy to control foot and mouth disease.

Answer: Mr. Lidington: To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many appeals his Department has received from farmers against the slaughter of their livestock as part of his policy to control foot and mouth disease. [158264] Ms Quin: As of 3 May, 17 cases are under consideration by MAFF in which farmers have engaged solicitors who have raised questions about the proposed slaughter of their stock. They all involve the contiguous cull policy before it was recently modified. The legislation does not provide for a formal legal appeals procedure against slaughter although, of course, challenge by way of judicial review is always available to anyone. To date only one judicial review has been brought but it was discontinued by the applicant. MAFF policy is that if a farmer objects to having his stock slaughtered under the contiguous slaughter policy, a veterinary reassessment is performed. This takes into consideration all the representation made by the farmer and reviews the situation on the ground. A final decision is then taken by the local Divisional Veterinary Manager.

Secondary information