Williams calls for review of fallen farm stock rules

The Liberal Democrat's Rural Affairs Spokesman and Brecon & Radnorshire MP, Roger Williams, has today called for an urgent review of the strict rules governing the disposal of fallen livestock from farms, which he says now place an increasing burden on the farming industry and may well have become out of date.

The rules require all fallen stock to be removed from farms and incinerated at specialist facilities, with an increasing cost falling on the farming industry.

Mr. Williams said:

" A full, independent, scientific review now would be timely and appropriate. The current rules were introduced following the BSE crisis back in the mid 1990s, amid concerns that on-farm disposal methods risked spreading the disease and putting human health at risk."

" However, with our improved understanding of the nature of the disease and the incidence of BSE having fallen to a relative handful of cases per year in the UK, a review now would be very appropriate. The control methods brought in at the time of the original crisis appear to have worked.

An independent review would indicate whether in the current circumstances such strict fallen stock disposal methods are still justified."

" When an expensive regulatory burden is placed upon an industry, it is vital that Government keeps such burdens under constant review to ensure that the continued imposition of that burden is justified. I believe that may not be the case any longer for fallen stock disposal."