WRITTEN QUESTION E-1368/01

by Nuala Ahern (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(7 May 2001)

Subject: Foot-and-mouth crisis

In light of the continuing foot-and-mouth crisis and the regulations requiring that all animals moving into the island of Ireland are certified with animal health certificates, can the Commission account for animal movements to the Republic of Ireland from the UK, in the context that animals moving from Northern Ireland to the Republic do not require such certificates, and that there has been confusion and delay with regard to the tracing of these animals because of this?

According to reports in the media a truck belonging to a dealer in Banbridge, Ireland, carrying infected animals from Britain, travelled to several marts in Northern Ireland. Can the Commission confirm that all these animals have been traced? Can the Commission confirm that the Irish and UK authorities have traced all potentially diseased animals that originated in the UK?

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(6 July 2001)

Community legislation on intra-Community trade of bovine, porcine, ovine and caprine animals, as laid down in Council Directives 64/432/EEC of 26 June 1964 on animal health problems affecting intra-Community trade in bovine animals and swine(1) and Council Directive 91/68/EEC of 28 January 1991 on animal health conditions governing intra-Community trade in ovine and caprine animals(2), requires that any consignment of these animals moving from one Member State to another Member State is accompanied by a health certificate issued by the competent veterinary authority of the Member State of dispatch.

The above provisions therefore apply to movements from Northern Ireland to the Republic of Ireland. In addition, safeguard measures due to bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) ban any movement of live cattle from the United Kingdom.

Due to the foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak in the United Kingdom, the Commission adopted a ban on 21 February 2001, the day after the reporting of the disease in England, on any movement of animals of FMD-susceptible species from the United Kingdom to any other destination. In the following days further decisions were also taken concerning the tracing of the consignments of those animals, and particularly sheep, which had been moved from the United Kingdom after the likely date of FMD introduction in England, which was estimated to be not before 1 February 2001.

During the FMD crisis, the Irish authorities have constantly informed the Commission about their progress in tracing animals legally or illegally moved into Ireland. Most of these animals had been routinely slaughtered before 21 February. The animals concerned, sheep and pigs, mainly introduced for fattening or immediate slaughter, were traced. Tests carried out on these animals gave negative results for FMD.

On 13 March 2001, the Irish authorities provided the Commission with a report which concludes that a haulier was responsible for some illegal movements of sheep. The Commission is not aware whether the haulier mentioned in this report is the same as that quoted by the Honourable Member. However, the Commission is confident that the competent authorities of Ireland have done their utmost to trace all consignments of animals introduced into Ireland in the first weeks of February 2001.

(1) OJ B 121, 29.7.1964.

(2) OJ L 46, 19.2.1991.