Originally from: Pat Gardiner
                        
Hello Bill

No, I’m not arguing against the use of sniffer dogs at border controls, although I perhaps could, I’m arguing about their effectiveness in respect of FMD and, indeed, CSF.

Without going into details, we are quite properly misled about how customs do catch smugglers. One of the features of all anti-smuggling activities is the necessity of misleading the smugglers about the exact nature of detection techniques.

You should not read too much into the visibility or invisibility of HMC&E at any given point.

I’m no scientist, but I’m told that bush meat is mainly from species that do not carry FMD and CSF. There is no evidence that any meat arriving at Heathrow is infected, or that it reaches our farms or that any smuggled meat has ever caused an out-break anywhere.

There is something else too….a fault in the logic that we can all share. You read many articles along the following lines:

“ X quantity of illegal meat imports are passing through X airport every week, undetected.”

Anyone who has ever worked in the field has a quiet chuckle at this. If they are undetected, how do they know?

Such stories are almost always spin, usually from someone seeking an increase in their budget or, much more sinisterly, a good reason for pointing the finger elsewhere.

We do know, beyond any shadow of doubt, that MAFF-Defra lied about imported African meat passing though Newcastle-on -Tyne to Chinese Restaurants. I was the man that blew the whistle on them. Two Cabinet Ministers had to apologise, one twice. Most of the details of this event are well known. I’ve published them many times and won’t bore you all again.

You will find that every discussion on illegal imports always strays quickly from farm disease to other matters, which whilst important are irrelevant.

I hope this helps put the matter into perspective.

Regards Pat Gardiner