30.

Decision 91/42/EEC allows the Commission to adopt recommendations and explanatory notes on the criteria to be applied when drawing up contingency plans. Guidelines for the preparation of contingency plans for epidemic diseases were made available to all Member States in 1995, supplemented specifically for FMD in 1998. The latter document includes a requirement for different scenarios, including the worst case, taking into account the specific risk factors and other characteristics of the Member State. (a) Contingency plans are based on a risk assessment in relation to both virus incursion and subsequent spread. They are assessed during real-time exercises conducted by the Member States. In the Decision and the Guidelines the Commission could not indicate to the Member States the number of personnel required to comply with the plans, as it then had little authority, especially in the field of animal health, and therefore scarce expertise to interfere with the organisation of administrative action by the Member States when issues of police, public order and civil liberties were involved. (b) Missions have been carried out since 1999 to investigate the implementation of the contingency plans. These inspections were carried out in application of Decision 91/42/EEC and the aforementioned Guidelines which address such points as propagation of the plan to the national farming community and regular exercises. (c) Article 13(3) of Directive 85/511/EEC provided that a decision on emergency vaccination may be taken by the Commission in collaboration with the Member State concerned (Committee procedure) ‘when FMD is confirmed and threatens to become extensive’. Such a decision would specify the conditions under which emergency vaccination would be carried out. In addition, the decision to introduce emergency vaccination around an outbreak could be taken by the affected Member State following notification to the Commission, provided that basic Community interests would not be endangered and these national measures would be reviewed in the Standing Veterinary Committee and harmonised by Commission decision. Work on laying down criteria at Community level started in 1991 and continued in 1999. In 2001 all the criteria were used to assess whether it was advisable to carry out emergency vaccination in the Member States requesting it. Directive 2003/85/EC requires preparations to be made for vaccination after the first confirmed outbreak, but for it to be initiated depending on the epidemiological situation and only if there is more than one outbreak. This Directive also provides guidance for the decision-making process on emergency vaccination, based on the report of the Scientific Committee of 1999. (d) In the case of suspicion, Directive 85/511/EEC required a census of all animals on the holding in question by species and category, already dead, infected or liable to be infected or contaminated to be prepared and kept up to date, in order to take account of animals born and animals dying. Only these figures are important for the control of the disease. However, records available on the holding or in a central/veterinary database in accordance with Community systems for the identification and registration of animals should be consulted and cross checked. (e) The need to incorporate livestock valuers in the local disease control centres is laid down in document VI/5211/95. (f) At the end of 2003 the Commission sent a questionnaire to the Member States and to the accession countries on the system for recruiting assessors, the general principles governing their remuneration and a system for compensating livestock farmers.