At the outset I should like to thank you, a Leas-Chathaoirligh, and the Cathaoirleach, for giving me the opportunity to speak on this very important topic this afternoon. Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy, BSE or, in common jargon, mad cow disease, is a new phenomenon. The first case of it was seen in Britain in 1985 and the first was confirmed in Britain in November 1986, less than four years ago. The total number of cases in Britain in the first year was 42. At this stage there have been approximately 14,000 cases of mad cow disease, or BSE, in Britain. At present the incidence of the disorder in Britain is about 300 to 400 new cases per week. By any standards those are alarming statistics. In the United Kingdom there has been at least one case of the disorder in 69 per cent of the herds in England, in 81 per cent of cattle herds in Wales and in 88 per cent of cattle herds in Scotland. Those figures indicate that loose terms one could say that the disorder is widespread in Britain. The figure for Scotland is alarming.
In our own country, so far as I am aware, 19 cases have been reported to date. Those cases have been spread across a very wide area even if they have been somewhat disproportionately located in Ulster. There have been seven cases in Munster and three cases in Leinster. In other words, more than half the total cases have been recorded in the southern half of the country. The remaining nine cases have been in Ulster, in Donegal and Monaghan mainly. The scientific reality about this disease is that as of now there is great ignorance of it. It is a new disorder, was first confirmed in cattle in 1986. As far as one can judge from the scientific literature it appears to spread from the use of ruminant offals containing a scrapie type agent which, in reality, appears to be an infected protein called a prion which does not even contain DNA. That gives an idea of how small this agent is. Scrapie has been around for many years. It is a well known disorder of sheep and yet the question has to be asked and answered, as to why this disorder spread to cattle? So far as I can see, there is no definitive answer to that. What we are having is considered speculation on the part of scientists.
Of course, the disorder can be spread to a number of other species. It has been found in a cat in what one might call conventional surroundings. It has been shown in laboratories that if one appropriately administers the serum to animals such as mice, one can infect them with it. That has been done to other animals, too.
Scrapie has been known to exist in mink for quite a long period. At this stage there is a great deal of ignorance as to the incubation period of this disorder. It cannot be established at this stage with any certainty whether the disease is transmittable vertically or horizontally. In other words, whether it will spread across animals or whether it will be passed down through the generations. There is no certainty on that issue either.
I read in The Irish Times of Tuesday that it is going to take a further two years before it will be known whether the measures to curb BSE will work. The reality then is that we are dealing with a disease the full dimensions of which we do not, at this stage, understand. The evidence, to the extent that I can understand it, indicates that it is unlikely, that it is remote; that it is very unlikely that this disorder will jump the species to humans but it is also true that there is no certainty that this disease will not jump to humans.
Scientists say there is no evidence that it will jump to humans but the reality is that while there is no evidence, there is also no certain proof that this cannot happen. So far as I can see that has not been made clear to the public. Indeed, the Southwood Report states that the chances of this disease spreading to humans are remote. If it was certain that it could not, I imagine that the Southwood report would say that. Accordingly, we cannot exclude the possibility that this disease can spread to humans. I cannot reconcile that with statements such as "Irish beef is perfectly safe." If it is perfectly safe, it would imply that it was established beyond any doubt whatsoever that the disease could not jump the species gap. I want to emphasise again that the chances of it jumping from species to humans is very remote. However, it is less than frank to go so far as to say it is perfectly safe, as the Minister for Agriculture and Food is quoted as saying. Commissioner MacSharry is somewhat less dogmatic. He says that, as far as he is concerned, beef is safe, as distinct from making an absolute definite statement of its safety. Therefore, we are either sitting on a time bomb or this is another harmless food scare. At this stage, it seems very likely that it is just another food scare but we cannot exclude the possibility that it might have very far-reaching effects.
For that reason, it is imperative that the Department of Agriculture and Food lay down careful contingency plans to cope with all possibilities. In other words, all possibilities should be considered and, as far as it is reasonable to do so, plans should be made to cater for all possible outcomes as we work our way towards the business of collecting more evidence.
In relation to the collection of more evidence, I have to say, with considerable regret, that our investment in this type of research has been very small. It is also a historical fact and regrettable that investment in agricultural veterinary research has been slashed over the past few years, with the ripping asunder of the research unit of ACOT and, to add insult to injury, the appalling statements which were made by the chairman of ACOT in one of his outbursts.
In relation to smuggling, I read in the Irish Independent of 18 May 1990 in a quote from the Minister for Agriculture and Food, Deputy O'Kennedy, that no smuggling across the Border was taking place. That referred to a statement he made two days previous to that. In that same newspaper, earlier in the article, it states that 200 smuggled cattle from the North had been seized by custom officials in recent months. How does one reconcile those two statements? This brings me back to my concern in this matter and that is that we are not being frank with the public. How can anybody say there is no smuggling taking place that there is no problem in regard to smuggling when the truth is that smugglers work behind closed doors? Smugglers do not make announcements that they are about to do a spot of smuggling, nor are they forthcoming about having done a spot of smuggling.
I find it hard to reconcile those statements with the fundamental realities and with the assertions of perfect safety, something which approximates to perfect security on the Border, with statements such as, "No smuggling is taking place of cattle across the Border into the Republic." It does not add up and it bothers me that we are not being frank with the public.
Will the Minister say what happened to the 19 confirmed cases and did any of the meat from those animals enter the food chain? In other words will the Minister give us a categoric assurance that no meat from those 19 confirmed cases entered the human food chain? I do not wish to increase public fears but I want to emphasise that there is a small degree of uncertainity. It is offensive to the public and it treats them with less respect than they deserve to make absolute statements in this regard. Nothing is absolute about this at this stage and that is the fundamental reality we must face up to.
Finally, our failure to brand our meat over the years means that we cannot exploit the opportunities that exist for us in Britain and European markets. I will conclude by making a special appeal in relation to this disease. Ultimately, the first signs will have to be seen by herd-owners and by the owners of pets. As I understand the disorder, its initial signs relate to relatively minor neurological changes, after this organism has been incubating for a prolonged period of time. If the public and farmers in particular, are aware of those minor neurological changes, it would greatly facilitate them in seeking veterinary attention at the earliest opportunity. That is very important if we are to limit any possible spread of the disorder.
