WRITTEN QUESTION E-3052/00 by Hanja Maij-Weggen (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Implementing the veterinary control directive.
Date: 2000-09-28
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: animal disease, bird, competence of the Member States, disease prevention, import (EU), marketing, poultry farming, veterinary inspection, veterinary legislation

C 136 E/168

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

8.5.2001

(2001/C 136 E/196)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3052/00

by Hanja Maij-Weggen (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(28 September 2000)

Subject: Implementing the veterinary control directive

The European Union faces the threat of a serious and economically damaging disease of poultry because of
the failure of some Member states to apply strict veterinary controls to imports of animals intended for the
exotic trade.

1.
Does the Commission agree that this is the inescapable conclusion of the recent study carried out by
the Dutch Dierenbescherming (animal welfare organisation) with the assistance of the senior veterinary
officers of ten Member States?

Does the Commission agree that the report(cid:146)s recommendations are sensitive and that the quantitative

2.
risk analysis will have to be carried out as a matter of urgency, to say the least?

3. What action will the Commission take to prevent European citizens having to cope with serious
illnesses caused by infected poultry?

Joint answer
to Written Questions E-3043/00 and E-3052/00
given by Mr Byrne on behalf of the Commission

(31 October 2000)

The Commission is well aware of the possible risk of introducting poultry diseases by imports of exotic
birds, especially as these birds may originate from many different countries in the world.

Since the completion of the internal market, imports of poultry are harmonised by Community legislation.
Furthermore in order to prevent the risk of introduction of poultry diseases by the import of exotic birds
the Commission has recently proposed a draft decision (1) laying down the animal health requirements and
the veterinary certification for the import of birds, other than poultry, and the conditions for quarantine.

All commercially traded birds other than poultry will have to be placed for at least 30 days in an officially
approved quarantine facility or centre in Member States. During quarantine, clinical
inspections and
laboratory examinations for Newcastle disease and avian influenza will have to be carried out and birds
may only be released by official authorisation on condition that all tests have given favourable results. This
observation period will also provide for the detection of other diseases.

The Commission believes that the introduction of these harmonised rules caters for the disease concerns
expressed in the report (cid:145)The veterinary control in the European Union of imported pet birds and mammals
of Cites and non-Cites species(cid:146) prepared by the Eurogroup for animal welfare.

The import of birds accompanying their owners is subject to national rules and it is not the intention of
the Commission to introduce harmonised rules in this area at the present time as according to information
from Member States no outbreaks of disease in poultry have been attributed to such imports.

(1) SANCO/1295/2000 rev. 6.