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Foot
& Mouth farmer banned from keeping animals – and new
disease outbreak is confirmed
THE
FARMER whose farm was traced as the source of last year’s
foot and mouth crisis was sentenced last week to be electronically
tagged for three months.
The details and timing of Bobby Waugh’s sentence for failing
to report the first signs of the epidemic, which cost £8
billion and led to the slaughter of more than ten million animals,
could not have been more ironic.
The Government also announced that the national tracing scheme
for pigs, involving tags and daubs of paint, had failed to locate
the farmer who last week sent to market a pig suspected of being
infected with foot and mouth.
In a further twist, six pigs at Cheale Meats, the abattoir at
Brentwood in Essex where foot and mouth was first diagnosed
last year, have tested positive for Aujeszky’s disease,
which kills pigs, cattle, sheep, cats, dogs and rats. If the
disease - not seen in Britain since 1989 - is confirmed, live
pig exports will be banned.
Although a vaccine exists, the culling of every herd of pigs
that came into contact with the six diseased animals would be
the most likely next step, said Stewart Royston, Chief Executive
of the National Pig Association. “Another animal disease
is the last thing we need. It would be a severe economic setback,”
he said.
Bobby Waugh, 56, appearing at South East Northumberland magistrates’
court, was also banned from rearing pigs, cattle, sheep and
goats for 15 years and ordered to pay £10,000 costs. At
a previous hearing, the farmer who ran a pig fattening farm
at Heddon-on-the-Wall in Northumberland with his brother, Ronald,
was found guilty of five charges.
The electronic tagging order will confine him to his cottage
in Pallion, Sunderland, between 8pm and 7am.
Waugh had always maintained that he had been made a scapegoat
for the outbreak which was officially confirmed in February
2001. Various rumours and theories arose soon afterwards that
the disease may have been recorded elsewhere, possibly as early
as December 2000, and that Waugh was ‘chosen’ as the
source, due to his farm having previously
been the subject of an RSPCA investigation.
It was claimed that MAFF, who were then responsible for the
control of Foot and Mouth may have identified an FMD outbreak
two months before the first ‘official’ case was announced
in Heddon-on-the-Wall.
The Army confirmed that it was approached by the Government
over contingency plans to deal with a foot and mouth outbreak
three days before the outbreak was officially announced in the
UK.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman confirmed that MAFF had contacted
the Army headquarters at Copthorne Barracks, Shrewsbury, on
February 16th. Plans about how to deal with foot-and-mouth,
including mass slaughter and sealing off farmland, were discussed
at the meeting 72 hours before the first outbreak was confirmed
at Cheale Meats abattoir, Essex, on February 19th.
The MoD spokesman said that such meetings were held every six
months as a matter of routine, mainly to maintain resources.
However, he could not confirm the dates of any previous meetings.
Further evidence that an outbreak of FMD had been detected as
early as December and ‘contained’ by MAFF came to
light when it emerged that MAFF officials had approached numerous
timber merchants around the country for firewood several weeks
before the disease ‘officially’ arrived.
MAFF insisted that such approaches to timber merchants were
also a matter of routine and a way of ascertaining resources
in the event of an outbreak. However, some of the timber merchants
phoned by unnamed officials said that they had not heard from
the Ministry since the last outbreak of FMD 34 years ago.
Despite the introduction of strict rules, introduced to prevent
a repeat of last year’s outbreak, DEFRA said last week
that its officials had been unable to trace the owner of the
pig at the centre of last week’s foot and mouth scare.
The pig came from one of 34 Yorkshire farms and passed through
Selby market before being spotted at an abattoir at Congerstone
in Leicestershire. Tests eventually proved negative but none
of the farmers would admit to owning the pig.
Elliot Morley, animal health minister, called the breach “amazing”
and said it raised serious questions. “The rules appear
not to have been followed. I am frankly amazed that, after the
terrible experience of last year, some people don’t seem
to have learned from this.”
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