A former Conservative Agriculture Minister, Mr John Gummer, yesterday told the BSE inquiry he was unaware of any public health implications from eating offal during the crisis despite his predecessor's backing scientific opinion that there was cause for concern.
The inquiry heard that the minister's predecessor, Mr John Macgregor, had made it clear to ministerial colleagues that he backed the views of the Chief Veterinary Officer, Mr Keith Meldrum, who believed that offal should be banned from human consumption to protect public health.
Giving evidence to the London inquiry yesterday, Mr Gummer, who in the midst of the crisis proclaimed that beef was safe and fed a burger to his daughter Cordelia, said that he became Secretary of State for Agriculture in July 1989.
This was seven months after the Southwood Committee delivered the first government report on BSE and how to deal with the crisis.
The Southwood report suggested a ban on offal despite stating that it was unlikely humans could catch BSE.
Mr Gummer said today he was not aware of any scientific evidence at the time that showed such a ban was urgent or necessary.
The offal ban had already been announced by the previous ministerial team but Mr Gummer said that although it was his job to implement the legislation he did not feel a sense of urgency about it. He said that he did not believe the ban was "essential for public health" and added that when he took over his position it was summertime; a lot of local authorities, whom he had to consult, were on holiday.
The offal ban was not introduced until November 1989 - 10 months after the Southwood report suggested it.
After a domestic cat became infected with a form of BSE in May 1990, the government made a further statement on beef through the Chief Medical Officer, Sir Donald Acheson.
Sir Donald had said there was no "scientific justification" for not eating British beef, adding it was safe for everyone, both adults and children. Mr Gummer said he had felt no reservations about the statement and noted that despite later comments which appeared to show "hesitation" on Sir Donald's part about beef safety, none of it was communicated to him.