Day 129 - 25 May 95 - Page 04
1 The technical side of it, as I say, I would not have got
2 involved in; that would have been done by Quality Assurance
3 and Keith Kenny.
4
5 Q. You mean the meat side of things?
6 A. Yes.
7
8 Q. Did you investigate the cooking side of things?
9 A. We spoke to the crew members and the Managers there.
10 As I said, as far as we could ascertain, they were
11 following the procedures we had laid down at the time.
12
13 Q. Was the grill in Preston, was that a clamshell one or one
14 of the old style -- I cannot remember what they are called?
15 A. Flat grill, it was a flat grill at Preston.
16
17 Q. Have you read the report of the Environmental Health, the
18 Public Health Laboratory Service Report?
19 A. I seem to remember reading it when it came out, but
20 I have not read it recently.
21
22 Q. What do you remember the Public Health Laboratory Service
23 saying about what they considered the cause was of the
24 incident?
25 A. I honestly -- I cannot remember.
26
27 Q. You cannot remember?
28 A. I cannot remember.
29
30 Q. Did you communicate their findings to other stores?
31 A. It would not have been my role at the time. As
32 I explained to you, I was not involved in what came after
33 the actual incident at Preston. My role at the time was to
34 liaise and cooperate with the Environmental Health Officers
35 and with the Operations people. I was not involved when
36 the report came out, although I did read if for interest,
37 because, as I explained to you, my role in food safety has
38 varied quite a lot throughout my time in hygiene and
39 safety. Shortly after Preston, I was instructed that it
40 was to be purely health and safety for a while as David
41 Wignall got more involved.
42
43 Q. Your involvement with the Environmental Health Officers,
44 what did that involve?
45 A. It involved going up to the restaurant, meeting with
46 the Operations people, going along to the Environmental
47 Health Offices, meeting with them, going back to the
48 restaurant, touring with them, meeting with senior
49 Operations management, and that is all I recollect at the
50 time.
51
52 Q. The Chief Medical Officer of the Department of Health
53 issued advice to companies cooking and selling hamburgers,
54 beef burgers, do you remember that?
55 A. I seem to remember he sent out advice to everybody --
56 companies and in respect to the home as well.
57
58 Q. That was as a result of the Preston incident?
59 A. It was certainly just after that.
60
