WRITTEN QUESTION P-2613/00

by Hiltrud Breyer (Verts/ALE) to the Commission

(25 July 2000)

Subject: Live transport of farm animals

Recent replies from the Commission to questions on the live transport of animals have indicated that the Food and Veterinary Office (FVO) is very aware of the animal welfare problems that continue to exist as a result of a failure of many Member States to take their enforcement responsibilities seriously. More inspections by the FVO, specifically on the welfare of animals during transport and to establish the extent to which Directives 91/628/EEC(1) and 95/29/EC(2) are being enforced, could well improve the situation.

In view of the fact that the number of such inspections and the number of inspectors working in this field have been woefully inadequate in recent years, could the Commission please answer the following questions:

1. What initiatives will the Commission take regarding the non-compliance of Member States with Directives 91/628/EEC and 95/29/EC?

2. What steps has the Commission taken to increase the number of inspections on animal transport?

3. How many inspections have taken place in the first six months of this year (please specify where, when, by whom and exact number of inspections?

(1) OJ L 340, 11.12.1991, p. 17.

(2) OJ L 148, 30.6.1995, p. 52.

Answer given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(28 September 2000)

1. In the last year a working group of the standing veterinary committee, with representatives from each of the Member States, has focused on the difficulties arising from the proper enforcement of current Community legislation in the field. The Commission will continue with this and similar initiatives in order to improve the level of co-operation between Member States on this issue and to increase the level of enforcement of Council Directive 91/628/EEC of 19 November 1991 on the protection of animals during transport and amending Directives 90/425/EEC and 91/496/EEC (as amended by Council Directive 95/29/EC of 29 June 1995). Day-to-day enforcement of the Directive is the responsibility of the Member States. The Commission veterinary inspectors carry out periodic on-the-spot checks to ensure that the requirements of these texts are being properly enforced. Incidents of non-compliance with the directives are brought to the attention of the Member State concerned at the end of each inspection mission and more formally in the subsequent mission report.

Similarly, if animal welfare societies or, indeed, members of the public, bring incidents of non-compliance with the directives to the attention of the Commission, it is the normal practice of the Commission to intervene with the authorities of the Member State involved. If the Member State fails to take rapid action to bring to an end the alleged infringements the Commission may decide to open infringement proceedings under Article 226 (ex Article 169) of the EC Treaty.

2. The Commission has recently increased to four the number of inspectors specifically dedicated to animal welfare issues, including the transport of animals. It is anticipated that a total number of ten dedicated animal welfare inspection missions will be carried out by the inspectors in the year 2000, as compared to seven in 1999. Three of the five missions planned for the second half of this year will focus exclusively on animal transport and another will cover welfare at the time of slaughter together with animal transport.

In addition, animal welfare forms part of the wider inspection activities of the Commission. For instance, inspections of border inspection posts cover aspects such as the staffing and facilities provided to ensure that animals are examined for fitness for import, and route plans are verified during these missions. In addition to public health issues, the inspections of abattoirs also include aspects of animal welfare during transport.

3. Five Commission missions devoted specifically to animal welfare have been carried out already in 2000. Of these, one focused exclusively on animal transport and another covered some elements of transport. The missions were to the United Kingdom (5 days in February/March with 2 inspectors and a national expert, concerning the welfare of pigs and calves on farm); Sweden (5 days in April with 2 inspectors and a national expert, concerning the welfare of pigs and calves on farm); Denmark (5 days in May with 2 inspectors and a national expert, concerning the welfare of pigs and calves on farm) Spain (5 days in May/June with 2 inspectors and a national expert, concerning animal transport and staging points) and Austria (5 days in June with 2 inspectors and a national expert, concerning the welfare of pigs and calves on farm and some aspects of animal transport). In addition, 2 inspectors held two separate three-day meetings specifically devoted to animal transport with the authorities of Greece and Italy in February 2000.