ABSTRACT
The foot and mouth outbreak of 2001 involved the slaughter of at least seven million animals. The lasting impact on the farming and wider rural community of this episode cannot be understated. It has scarred not only those farmers whose animals were culled; those unaffected by the disease as such but unable to move stock to market arguably suffered more. These losses went uncompensated whereas the mandatory culling of animals at least triggered a payment of compensation under the Animal Health Act 1981. The Government's position on compensation is a long established principle that the Government does not meet the costs of consequential losses, which must be borne by the industry. No explanation as to why this might be the case is offered but the majority of people might share the view of the Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Environment who pointed out that: The moral and financial responsibility for this clearly lies with the UK Government.
