We'd like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum... Read More »
Debate House Prices
In order to help keep the Forum a useful, safe and friendly place for our users, discussions around non MoneySaving matters are no longer permitted. This includes wider debates about general house prices, the economy and politics. As a result, we have taken the decision to keep this board permanently closed, but it remains viewable for users who may find some useful information in it. Thank you for your understanding.
📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!
Brexit the economy and house prices part 7: Brexit Harder
Comments
-
You blame the EU for mad cow disease and foot and mouth as well?
You cannot deny the above and your rebuttal is weak. Make your own mind up:FRENCH scientists issued a damning report today finally admitting the true scale of their country's mad cow disease epidemic.
The confession that BSE was rife in France in the early Nineties comes a decade after it banned British beef.
The study, ordered by a Paris judge, found not enough had been done to prevent the spread of BSE in France when it was first discovered there in 1986.
Scientists said the lives of nine French people who died between 1996 and 2006 from the human form, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, could have been saved if better precautions had been taken.
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy, which causes cows' brains to become "spongy" and full of holes, was first identified in Britain in 1986. In 1988 scientists declared it was a disease that could be passed to humans, and measures were taken to stop it spreading.
But in France, farmers were only obliged to declare the illness from 1990.
The EU lifted a trade ban on British beef in 1999 - but France ignored the ruling and continued its own illegal ban for seven years, while claiming their herds were disease-free. It has never paid tens of millions of pounds in EU fines for persisting with the embargo. President Jacques Chirac said in 2003 that the only thing Britain had given European farming was mad cow disease.
Now the report has exposed the true situation in France at the time of the epidemic. Scientist Jean-Louis Thillier said: "There was enough scientific information for the government to have taken measures to protect the public from BSE in 1991. In fact it was not until 10 years later that adequate steps were taken.
"Why was there an embargo on British beef, but nothing being done here? Perhaps because the French government forgot its role in guaranteeing the safety of food products, and this neglect cost the lives of nine people."
They will be what they are but my main point with the horse meat was the over complex and industrialised, multi-national movement of animals that is entirely focussed on profit rather than quality of the product.
Local farmers and local slaughter of animals reduces massively the risk of disease spreading out of control:Global pandemics that impact on food supplies are scary things.
The latest threat comes from African swine fever, a highly contagious virus with no known cure, and a near zero survival rate for infected pigs.
The good news is that the disease is not harmful to human health. The bad news is that it will probably hurt our wallets.
The epicentre of the current crisis is China, the world's biggest producer and consumer of pork. It alone accounts for more than half of the world's pig population.
China is struggling to contain the disease, which has spread to every part of the country since August last year.0 -
Sailtheworld wrote: »Food scandals will continue to happen whether we stay in the EU or leave. You should be thinking about whether the food risk is lower or higher. I'm hopeful that Boris isn't quite as stupid as I think and won't degrade food standards for the quick political win of a US trade deal. Trump can see that, for Boris, just about any deal would have the brexiteers braying with delight which puts the UK in a weak position.
Why should they continue to happen when the all powerful EU has the necessary ruling and oversight to ensure that a suitable system of safeguards is in place?
Maybe it's the fact that they are not applied without "fear or favour". We all know how militant the French farmers or fisherman or dockworker can be if they don't like the outcome.
I am absolutely clear that the risks are not adequately countered by the EU. Perhaps you could find some more examples where threats to food safety have not been adequately countered by ineffective/not applied EU rules. I'll give you a starter:
https://www.foodwatch.org/en/press/2018/food-scandals-will-continue-to-emerge-unless-eu-food-law-is-fundamentally-revised-warns-foodwatch/"The EU has failed to protect 500 million consumers in Europe from health risks and deception in the food market. Worse still, the European Union is doing nothing to improve the situation, but instead continues to serve the interests of big food corporations."
Now how much of this links directly into the CAP?
Still a strawman Bug?0 -
Why should they continue to happen when the all powerful EU has the necessary ruling and oversight to ensure that a suitable system of safeguards is in place?
A failure rate that's more than zero doesn't indicate a failed system.
To make progress the system needs to be tested, interrogated and subject to criticism per the link you provided.
Your food is going to be no safer for leaving the EU. Probably scope to go the other way if Boris does Trump's bidding and there's also scope for food safety to move down the political priority list.0 -
You cannot deny the above and your rebuttal is weak. Make your own mind up:
They will be what they are but my main point with the horse meat was the over complex and industrialised, multi-national movement of animals that is entirely focussed on profit rather than quality of the product.
Local farmers and local slaughter of animals reduces massively the risk of disease spreading out of control:0 -
As long as you have international markets for meat that problem will be a potential hazard whether we are in the EU or not! One reason I love the EU is because of the generally rigorous standards it enforces. Can you guarantee that any replacement trade deals will be as rigorous in their standards?Quarter of meat sold in UK imported from nations weaker on animal welfare0
-
We can make them as rigorous as we want, that's the point and FYI UK standards here are generally much higher than the EU's, read the following admittedly quite old but still very relevant article and educate yourself.
How can that be the point if you say standards are already higher while we still wear the shackles?0 -
We can make them as rigorous as we want, that's the point and FYI UK standards here are generally much higher than the EU's, read the following admittedly quite old but still very relevant article and educate yourself.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/feb/16/meat-imports-animal-welfare-standards
So I'm glad you agree how high our standards are while we are in the EU. When we leave however they are likely to slip. The reason....we need new trade deals and in order to get them we will need to undercut the EU, chlorinated chicken and hormone fed beef here we come! Environmental standards and employment rights will also be eroded. Johnson said as much a few days ago.
https://www.ft.com/content/26caaa8e-1185-11e8-8cb6-b9ccc4c4dbbb0 -
That reminds me of when several cyclists in London got injured/killed by lorries. Boris wanted to legislate that lorries would have extra safety features. Getting legislation through the EU to enforce this is a drawn out affair, e.g.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-eu-trucks/eu-truck-safety-and-efficiency-law-faces-delay-until-2022-idUSKBN0JP0T220141211
Could an independent Britain have pushed through some quicker laws to force retrofitting of extra mirrors and proximity sensors which are also imposed on EU lorries cruising our fee-free roads? I think so. Standards need to be relevant to their market and environment.0
This discussion has been closed.
Confirm your email address to Create Threads and Reply

Categories
- All Categories
- 351.3K Banking & Borrowing
- 253.2K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 453.8K Spending & Discounts
- 244.3K Work, Benefits & Business
- 599.5K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 177.1K Life & Family
- 257.8K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 16.2K Discuss & Feedback
- 37.6K Read-Only Boards