asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what is the approximate percentage of fresh meat consumed in the United Kingdom which is inspected by meat inspectors before consumption; and to what extent such inspection includes ante-mortem inspection as well as post-mortem inspection.

In England and Wales over 90 per cent. of fresh meat is inspected. All of this is inspected post-mortem, but ante-mortem inspection is not at present general. I recognise that it must be one of the objectives of future policy to make it so.In Scotland all fresh meat is inspected both ante-mortem and post-mortem, except in a few isolated areas exempted by law.Meat inspection in Northern Ireland is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Government.