Volume 5: Animal Health, 1989-96
4a. Implementation, enforcement and monitoring of the animal SBO ban
MAFF responsibility - the State Veterinary Service
Responsibilities of the State Veterinary Service
Structure of the Veterinary Field Service
The practice of SVS inspections
SVS visits to monitor SBO controls

Responsibilities of the State Veterinary Service

4.22 As noted above, the role of central government included a monitoring function. In practice this role was three-fold. Firstly, SVS staff were required to visit slaughterhouses, knacker's yards and other premises to provide advice and guidance to operators regarding relevant legislation. Secondly, SVS staff were to inform local authorities of any deficiencies identified in their visits, in order that local authorities could enforce legislation uniformly. However, this advice did not extend to guidance to the local authorities on their own enforcement duties. Thirdly, SVS staff were required to report to Ministers on the findings of their visits to facilitate the formation of policy and the introduction of legislation.

4.23 Section 63 of the Animal Health Act 1981 conferred wide powers of entry to 'inspectors' who were appointed either by the Minister (including veterinary inspectors) or by local authorities. ¹ Local authorities were required under S.52 to appoint as many inspectors as they thought necessary for the execution and enforcement of the Act. ²

Section 63(2) provides that:

(2) An inspector may at any time enter any land or shed to which this Act applies, or other building or place where he has reasonable grounds for supposing:

(a) that disease exists or has within 56 days existed; or

(b) that the carcase of a diseased or suspected diseased animal is or has been kept, or has been buried, destroyed or otherwise disposed of; or

(c) . . . ; or

(d) that this Act or an order of the Minister or a regulation of a local authority has not been or is not being complied with.

4.24 The Food Act 1984 conferred powers of entry into slaughterhouses and knacker's yards to central government, namely MAFF veterinarians, only for the purposes of ascertaining whether there had been any contravention of the Act or legislation made under it. Section 89 provided that:

(1) An inspector or authorised officer of the Minister and an authorised officer of the Secretary of State, for the purpose of ascertaining whether there is or has been any contravention of the provisions of this Act or of any regulations or order made under it, being provisions which the Minister in question is required or empowered to enforce -

(a) Shall have the powers of entry in subsection (2); . . .

(2) The powers of entry referred to in subsection (1) are the like powers of entry as are exercisable under section 87 or section 88 by an authorised officer of a council; and . . .

(3) For the purposes of any regulations made under section 13, this section and section 91(1) and (3) have effect as if the Minister as well as the local authority were empowered to enforce those regulations so far as they apply to slaughterhouses and knacker's yards. ³

4.25 Powers of entry under the Food Act were also provided to local authorities. Section 87(1) provided that:

(1) An authorised officer of the council shall . . . have a right to enter any premises at any reasonable hours -

(a) for the purpose of ascertaining whether there is or has been on, or in connection with, the premises any contravention of the provisions of this Act or of any regulations or byelaws made under it, being provisions which the council are required or empowered to enforce, and

(b) generally for the purpose of the performance by the council of their function under this Act or any such regulations or byelaws. ⁴

4.26 The Food Safety Act 1990, which repealed and replaced most of the Food Act 1984, confined powers of entry to the authorised officer of the enforcement authorities, which was the District Council except in cases of 'particular description', whereby under section 6(3) of the Act:

The Ministers may direct, in relation to cases of particular description or a particular case, that any duty imposed on food authorities by subsection (2) above shall be discharged by the Ministers or the Minister and not by those authorities.

4.27 There was no equivalent power of entry to that contained in section 89 of the Food Act. Section 32 of the 1990 Act, which came into force on 1 January 1991, provides:

32.- (1) An authorised officer of an enforcement authority shall . . . have a right at all reasonable hours -

(a) to enter any premises within the authority's area for the purpose of ascertaining whether there is or has been on the premises any contravention of the provisions of this Act, or of regulations or orders made under it: and . . . ⁵

4.28 Consequently, from 1 January 1991 the SVS no longer had powers of entry into slaughterhouses in relation to the human SBO ban. However, it retained all powers of entry under the Animal Health Act 1981 for disease control and the monitoring of compliance with legislation made under that Act pursuant to section 63. ⁶

4.29 Witnesses have told us in oral evidence that in practice this did not prevent monitoring by SVS officials, as they would usually visit premises in attendance with local authority inspectors who had the relevant powers of entry. ⁷ Mr Meldrum said in oral evidence:

[SVS officials] had to enter to do our checks with the cooperation of the district council. It did not make life any easier, although on the other hand I do not believe that they obstructed us in our wishes to go in, although they made it quite difficult sometimes, when we were talking about unannounced visits, they would like to be present when we went in. ⁸

4.30 In addition to possessing certain powers of entry to monitor enforcement by local authorities through the SVS, MAFF's Meat Hygiene Division also provided guidance to local authorities on how the various regulations should be implemented. This was provided by Food Standards and Hygiene (FSH) circulars, sent to the Chief EHO of each local authority. We were provided with a number of these circulars issued during the period 1990-95. However, the ones we have seen did not provide any specific guidance on the implementation of the animal SBO ban until 1995, and then only in relation to the staining requirements introduced by the Bovine Offal (Prohibition) (Amendment) Regulations 1995. This is discussed at the appropriate place below.

Structure of the Veterinary Field Service

4.31 For the purposes of this chapter the most important part of the SVS was the Veterinary Field and Investigation Service (VFIS). The VFIS was headed during the period covered in this chapter by Mr Iain Crawford, ⁹ who reported to Mr Meldrum, the Chief Veterinary Officer. The VFIS was itself subdivided into the Veterinary Field Service (VFS) and the Veterinary Investigation Service.

4.32 The VFS is the executive arm of the SVS and operates throughout Great Britain. It is responsible for implementing MAFF's policies in respect of animal health and welfare and the protection of human health. ¹⁰ It was the VFS staff who would have undertaken the visits to slaughterhouses and rendering plants described in this chapter. The Veterinary Investigation Service, on the other hand, provided laboratory and veterinary support to the VFS. ¹¹

4.33 The VFS was organised on a regional basis. Within England and Wales there were five regional offices at Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Harrogate, Reading and Wolverhampton. In addition, there were Scottish regional offices in Edinburgh and Aberdeen, the latter replaced by one in Inverurie during 1993.

4.34 Each regional office was headed by a Regional Veterinary Officer (RVO) assisted by a Deputy RVO (DRVO). In England and Wales the RVOs reported directly to Mr Crawford, while in Scotland they reported to an Assistant Chief Veterinary Officer in Edinburgh who in turn reported to Mr Crawford. ¹² Throughout the period 1986-96 a lead region was responsible for feeding back advice on the drafting and implementation of instructions issued by headquarters at Tolworth. The lead region on BSE was the South West, whose headquarters were at Bristol. ¹³

4.35 Each of these regions was further divided into divisional areas or Animal Health Divisional Offices, which reflected county areas except in cases where two smaller counties made up a single division. ¹⁴ In 1991 there were 41 divisions in Great Britain. Following structural reorganisation of the VFS in 1995 and 1996, the number of divisions was reduced to 23, while the number of regions was reduced to 5. ¹⁵ Each Animal Health Divisional Office was headed by a Divisional Veterinary Officer (DVO), who supervised Veterinary Officers (VOs) and technical staff within their division. Technical staff or technicians were Animal Health Officers (AHOs), who assisted the veterinary officers in their duties, and undertook certain duties themselves. Senior AHOs undertook similar duties to VOs.

4.36 VOs in the field were involved with 'implementing the full range of Ministerial policies in respect of animal health and welfare, international trade in animals and animal products, and the protection of human health'. ¹⁶ This could include 'dealing with outbreaks of notifiable disease, protecting animal welfare, facilitating exports of animals and animal products through the control of notifiable disease and the provision of export certification which verified the status of the exported commodity. . .'. ¹⁷

4.37 VOs' role in the protection of public health involved inspection of abattoirs and monitoring of compliance with meat hygiene regulations. ¹⁸ To aid this task, a number of VOs had special training in meat hygiene. These VOs(MH) were obliged to spend 50 per cent of their time devoted to meat hygiene duties, which entailed providing advice and guidance to plant operators and local authorities, in particular plant operators seeking export approval. ¹⁹ The VOs(MH) reported to the DVO on animal health matters, but to Regional Meat Hygiene Advisers (RMHAs) on specific meat hygiene issues.

4.38 DVOs oversaw and were responsible for the collection of samples from slaughterhouses, for disease monitoring and control purposes, and for welfare problems arising out of animal transit to slaughterhouses. However, this responsibility did not extend to welfare considerations within the slaughterhouses, which fell to the RMHAs.

4.39 RMHAs were responsible for the implementation of meat hygiene and welfare policy in slaughterhouses within their region. They reported to the Superintendent Meat Hygiene Adviser (SMHA) ²⁰ at SVS headquarters in MAFF's offices at Tolworth, who bore overall responsibility for the implementation of meat hygiene and welfare policy throughout England and Wales. For the structural and reporting changes in the SVS between 1986 and 1996 see annex 1 to vol. 15: Government and Public Administration.

The practice of SVS inspections

4.40 VFS officers carried out routine inspections and monitoring in slaughterhouses and other premises in accordance with instructions issued by MAFF in a manual known as 'Inset 31A'. The instructions covered 'inspection and reporting procedures for red meat' in slaughterhouses, both domestic and export-approved, cutting plants, cold stores and knacker's yards in England and in Wales. ²¹

Slaughterhouses

4.41 In March 1988, Inset 31A provided for visits to export-approved slaughterhouses to be conducted every month by the nominated VO(MH). Prescribed forms (MH1 forms) were required to be completed by VOs(MH), detailing the findings of the visit in relation to hygiene practices, structure and equipment, inspection and welfare. RMHAs, usually accompanied by a VO(MH), were also required to visit export-approved plants at least once every six months. ²²

4.42 Domestic slaughterhouses were only required to be visited once every year by a VO who had received meat hygiene training, but who need not be the nominated VO(MH). Unannounced visits to both types of premises could be made in consultation with the RMHA. However, local authorities were to be given notice of unannounced visits and operators were to be warned at earlier visits that unannounced visits could be made in the future. ²³

4.43 Following the introduction of the European Single Market, on 1 January 1993, Animal Health Circular 93/6 was issued replacing previous arrangements under Inset 31A for meat plants. 'Full-throughput' licensed slaughterhouses were to be visited at least once every three months; 'low-throughput' ²⁴ slaughterhouses once every year and unannounced visits were to be made if considered necessary. ²⁵

Knacker's yards

4.44 In March 1988, Inset 31A provided for visits to knacker's yards to be carried out annually by a VO. However, unannounced visits could be made in consultation with an RMHA, subject to notice being given to the local authority and operators. ²⁶

SVS visits to monitor SBO controls

4.45 Following the introduction of the animal SBO ban, additional visits by SVS staff were introduced by MAFF to monitor the handling of SBO at slaughterhouses, collection centres, renderers, knacker's yards and hunt kennels. The history and results of these visits are considered in greater detail in later sections of this chapter (see paragraphs 4.90-4.95 below). By way of summary, the instructions to SVS staff are set out in tabular form at annex B.