|
Viva!
|
|
|||
|
5 November 2001 A legal loophole means that under the government’s Animal Health (Amendment) Bill, due for its second reading on Monday, farmers who deliberately infect their animals with disease will still be able to obtain compensation. Stories of farmers claiming full compensation after deliberately infecting their animals with foot-and-mouth shocked the nation earlier this year. In response, the new legislation specifies that the deliberate infection of animals will constitute an offence. The penalty will be between six months and two years imprisonment and/or a fine. However, due to a legal loophole, any farmer found guilty will still be entitled to 75 per cent of their compensation payments. Farmers will be unconditionally entitled to 75 per cent of the pre-FMD value of the slaughtered animals, with the remaining 25 per cent being paid only if certain conditions are met. At a meeting of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs select committee on Tuesday 6 November, MPs summarised that farmers would in theory be able to deliberately infect their animals, spend time in jail and then come out to a hefty compensation sum. DEFRA minister Elliot Morley joked that this was one step better than the current system, which does not penalise farmers at all. "Does the government have any
real interest in preventing farmers from swindling money out of the taxpayer?"
questions Viva!’s senior campaigner Becky Smith. "The public are
sick of their money being used to bail out livestock farmers and legal
loopholes like this one are certainly not something to laugh about."
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
|
