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a risk assessment been done, using new and relevant information, and examining the need for the regulations now? Some farmers in this country have used biodigesters as a satisfactory way to dispose of animals on their farms. Mr. Tom Tudor, who farms at Llanerfyl in the constituency of my hon. Friend the Member for Montgomeryshire (Lembit Öpik), has demonstrated the efficiency and effectiveness of the practice to a number of people. I understand that the regulations will not allow the disposal of dead farm animals in on-farm biodigesters. Yet that seems to be a way in which farmers can deal with the problem themselves, on their own farms, without the biosecurity risks inherent in transporting dead animals around the country. My hon. Friend the Member for St. Ives also dealt with the issue of derogation. No doubt he is very pleased about the derogation for part of his constituency, but other places in England could be considered again to establish whether they meet the criteria for derogation. The upland areas of north England, and some of those in the south-west, could, I am sure, be considered. I am pleased about the derogation for the highlands and islands. It is because of that derogation that there is much greater support in Scotland for the implementation of the regulations than there is in England and Wales. Although the regulations before us relate only to England, I point out that we shall want derogations in Wales, too, if it can be shown that the criteria are fulfilled. The distance to rendering plants, especially in remote areas, presents a real problem. In mountainous areas, with the best will in the world, there will not be daily supervision of stock. How lenient will DEFRA be about stock that is found, perhaps several days after death, in mountainous areas? How will the legislation be used in such circumstances? A number of farmers have told me that, in mountainous areas, dead animals provide a source of carrion for rare birds, such as red kites. The reintroduction of red kites into upland areas has been based on the fact that dead sheep provide a feedstock for them. My hon. Friend the Member for St. Ives made a point about the disposal of blood in small abattoirs. Brian George of my local butcher, W.J. George and Son, tells me that, although the cost of putting in the system for trapping the blood is not very expensive, he is afraid that he will be held hostage by the processors when he has a tank full of mammalian blood and has to send it away for disposal. My hon. Friend gave an idea of the cost of disposal: it is currently £16 a tonne, and is shortly to be £60 or £80 a tonne. The fear is that when the renderers have a virtual monopoly in relation to local butchers, the price of disposal may rise considerably. Perhaps the Minister will address that. I have four questions for the Minister. First, has there been a risk assessment in the light of recent scientific knowledge? Secondly, will biodigesters be considered as a solution to the problems on farms in England and Wales? Thirdly, what can be done about the disposal of mammalian blood in small abattoirs? That is of particular concern to the businesses