As bird flu wings its way closer to these shores we can all take comfort from the fact that the man who headed up the Ministry of Agriculture at the time of BSE is publishing a book called THE POLITICS OF BSE. Richard Packer, the Perm Sec at the Min of Ag, will no doubt launch a staunch defence of his own role, despite being panned by the Committee of Inquiry. It's highly unusual for a civil servant to go into print like this, but few will be buying the book as it's priced at a hefty £50! And should you decide to buy it, you won't get a lot of reassurance about the government's capability to handle a bird flu outbreak. This is from the book's promotional blurb...He reveals the awful truth about the lack of information about this new disease and how the decisions taken to protect public health were a combination of informed guesswork and sheer good fortune.
I suspect a number of farmers will be horrified to read that. I don't expect they will be clicking HERE to buy it...
There is really no surprise here. This is how they react to most issues of this nature. If I close my eyes then it isn't there. Would somebody please give them a slap in the face to wake them up. Possibly with a dead duck!
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