Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their justification for the difference in application of the six-day standstill rule to (1) a red animal auction mart, and (2) a green animal auction mart; and whether they will keep that rule under review.

Government applies a risk-based approach to standstill rules. All livestock present in the red market go directly to slaughter and are slaughtered within 48 hours of their arrival to an abattoir. There is a negligible risk that any undetected disease in these animals may spread to other livestock holdings. Ante and post mortem checks are carried out in abattoirs to ensure that animals that are slaughtered are fit to enter the food chain. In contrast, livestock auctioned in a green market may move to other livestock holdings, spreading any undetected disease that these animals may be incubating. In consequence, livestock moving onto a green market have to comply with the six-day standstill rule to mitigate this risk. This and other factors will be part of Government’s review of standstill in 2018.