Control of brucellosis and rabies in Europe

Recommendation 578 (1970)

Author(s):

Parliamentary Assembly

Origin

Assembly debate on 23 January 1970 (17th Sitting) (see Doc. 2654, report of the Committee on Agriculture). Text adopted by the Assembly on 23 January 1970 (17th Sitting).

The Assembly,

1. Having examined the report by its Committee on Agriculture on the control of brucellosis and rabies ;

2. Recalling its Recommendation 544 (1969) on the control of foot-and-mouth disease in Europe ;

3. Considering that brucellosis constitutes a major risk to agriculture and often results in serious losses ;

4. Noting with satisfaction that all member states of the Council of Europe now have programmes for the eradication or control of brucellosis and rabies ;

5. Noting that the methods of eradication known today make it possible, without excessive cost, to isolate the infected regions effectively, provided that these methods are vigorously applied ;

6. Considering that all European states must fight epidemic diseases at national level so that these may be prevented from spreading to other countries which have hitherto remained uninfected or where the disease has already been eradicated,

7. Recommends that the Committee of Ministers :

7.1 submit the present recommendation and the accompanying report to the Ministries of Agriculture of the member states for their opinion and comments, drawing their attention in particular to the information contained in Appendices I and II to the aforementioned report (Doc. 2694) ;

7.2 invite member governments :

a to co-ordinate their methods of controlling these diseases, inter alia by agreeing on full sanitary preventive measures for countries free from the diseases and mixed preventive measures for countries engaged in eliminating them ;

b to work out a preventive system at national and international level ;

c to establish and publish the statistical data which would permit an evaluation of the economic implications of brucellosis and its control ;

d to make the necessary appropriations for control of brucellosis and rabies ;

e to designate, in infected countries, elimination zones in which all means of eradicating brucellosis will be concentrated ;

f to establish joint plans of compaign against foxes to be put into operation simultaneously ;

g to strengthen measures for the sanitary control of domestic carnivores brought into each country ;

7.3 invite member governments of the European Communities to use the credits of the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF) allocated to reform the milk market for the purpose of fighting brucellosis and systematically slaughtering, first contaminated animals, and then seropositive animals ;

7.4 ask the International Office of Epizootics to include in its monthly statistical bulletin information on the extent of brucellosis outbreaks in different countries and, wherever practicable, the steps being taken to check these ;

7.5 submit this recommendation and the accompanying report to the competent expert committees of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the Food and Agriculture Organisation for their opinion and comments.