You might like to use the attached - which is the list of people and organisations called to present detailed oral evidence to the LLI - it is taken from their website and is on the LLI CD - it clearly demonstrates that the vast majority of people called, from the PM downwards, were drawn from the Government ranks, civil servants or Govt advisers -and that no independent FMD scientists or other experts were consulted.
Of the 19 listed as 'Other organisations and individuals' this includes Govt adviser Roy Anderson and also the BVA, the NFU 2 meetings and ditto the NFUScotland - and also lnquiry visits to France and the Netherlands are also included here.
Apart from NFMG and Warmwell - there appears to have been nobody called to put a view counter to the Govt on the Control of the Disease. While I am sure we both appreciate the recognition of our cases and evidence by the LLI - there is no excuse the Inquiry can use to justify the selectiveness of its witnesses - and the limited evidence it took from those opposed to Government policy.
It is like having a court case and only hearing the case for the defence - but refusing to call any professionally qualified Expert Witnesses for the case for the prosecution. Because of this the Inquiry findings are fundamentally flawed - and should be recognised as such by the media and the Government and the opposition.
Furthermore, for the report to be used to justify the Animal Health Bill amendments would be totally wrong. The Inquiry has provided no means or ability to assess or critically determine whether the adopted control measures were proportionate, rational or reasonable.
Those of us who have undertaken such analysis from the full breadth of evidence that is available, but which the LLI chose to exclude, have found the reverse to be the case. The full evidence conclusively determines that the adopted control measures resulted in massively increasing the scale, impact and extent of the epidemic.
NFMG
29 July 2002
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MINISTERS |
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The Rt Hon Michael Meacher MP and The Rt Hon Alun
Michael MP |
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Jonathan Powell (with Jeremy Heywood, Martin Hurst
and David North) |
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Brian Bender (with Jenny Bacon and Neil Thornton),
First Meeting |
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Brian Bender (with Jenny Bacon and Neil Thornton),
Second Meeting |
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DEFRA Human Resources Officials (Teresa Newell, Pearl
Scrivener, Betty Philip and Ann
Waters) |
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Staffordshire Animal Health Officials (Mike Watkin
Jones, Chris Shimwell and Peter
Long) |
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Office of Science and Technology – Professor David
King (Chief Scientific Adviser) |
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