Sir, - I support your editorial on BSE (December 10th), which highlighted the consumers of beef and meat products as the most important players in this debate.
As Labour Party spokesperson on consumer affairs and food safety, I have raised BSE, and the dangers it poses to the food we eat, on at least 50 occasions in the Dail.
BSE is first and foremost a food safety issue. There will be no demand for any Irish meat product if consumer confidence is not assured both here and abroad.
The recent three-hour Dail debate instigated by the Labour Party has pushed food safety to the top of the public policy agenda. The debate contributed to getting a complete ban of meat and bonemeal and the full BSE testing of Irish cattle.
This week, the Dail will again debate BSE. The implications for consumer protection and food safety need to be hammered home again and again. - Yours, etc.,
Mary Upton, TD, Labour Party spokesperson on Consumer Affairs and Food Safety, Leinster House, Dublin 2.