Foot & Mouth Disease Crisis
by Deputy Paul McGrath, Fine Gael Deputy Spokesperson on Finance
The food sector, employing approximately 200,000 people and with an annual output of approximately £11 billion annually plays a crucial role in the economy of our country.
And so it was with shock and anxiety that news of a Foot and Mouth outbreak in the UK and later in South Armagh spread across the country.
Slowly, measures were put in place to counteract the further spread of the disease and the grim reality of the consequences of the disease reaching our country became widespread.
Despite early assurances from the Minister for Agriculture that "a ring of steel" was in place, nonetheless real stories of the movement of people from the UK to here and across the Border were rampant.
This focus on our food industry has exposed many gaps in our approach to food safety and traceability.
- How were sheep able to move so freely from Carlisle to Northern Ireland and then to Athleague?
- Were these sheep then slaughtered to be exported as "Irish Lamb"?
- Why were they made to arrive in the factory at 4am? How did the pre-slaughter inspections miss the tag marks in the animals' ears?
- Why were there cheques regularly made out to "fictitious names" by meat factories even though a formal complaint about such practices was made to the Department of Agriculture more than a year ago?
- When will the rogue operators who threaten the very future of the food industry in Ireland be apprehended?
While we all hope and pray and do our utmost to ensure that Foot and Mouth Disease does not come into our country we must also work with the Department of Agriculture and the Garda Authorities to expose the rogue operators - the people who for personal gain were prepared to put the jobs of thousands of people at risk and indeed jeopardise our economy.
Finally, I wish to commend all those - shops, schools, County Councils, farmers and individuals who, by providing disinfectant areas at their properties, have helped to prevent the spread of the dreaded disease.
I also commend the many organisations - sporting and otherwise, who have cancelled and curtailed activities, thereby cutting down on the risk of spreading the virus. If we continue to be vigilant we can prevent an outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease in our country.
Return to Media Centre
|
