asked Her Majesty's Government:Upon what scientific evidence was based the statement made by the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food on Radio 4 on Monday 4 December that prion proteins were the infectious agents for BSE. [HL92]

While there are a number of alternative theories as to the causal agents for BSE, the majority of the scientific evidence available points to the primary role of prion proteins. None of the ongoing studies on alternative theories has to date produced compelling evidence to suggest that prions are not implicated. Information on government-funded research on TSEs can be found at www.maff.gov.uk.