Written question asked by David Lidington (Conservative) on Wednesday, 13 November 2002, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 2 December 2002. It was answered by Baroness Beckett (Labour) on Monday, 2 December 2002 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Dept for Environment Food and Rural Affairs

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how frequently her Department checks the number and visibility of signs at ports and airports warning against the import of meat.

Answer: Mr. Lidington: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how frequently her Department checks the number and visibility of signs at ports and airports warning against the import of meat. [80466] Margaret Beckett: New posters were produced and displayed in February. During the summer we conducted one general exercise to assess the number and visibility of the posters. Since then we have conducted a number of follow-up reviews of sites where posters were allegedly not displayed. Priority is given to checking those ports and airports which handle the greatest number of international passengers. A further review will be initiated when the penalty posters and information leaflets are redesigned to reflect the new EU rules restricting imports of meat and dairy products from outside the EU from January 2003.

Secondary information