The recommendation to move to single-use instruments came after advice from the Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee (SEAC).

BBC: surgeon

On the BSE study, it is accountable to Defra and Seac.

BBC: Why sheep brains are a puzzle

Professor Peter Smith, chairman of Seac, the scientific body that advises the government on CJD, said the only way to prove the link between BSE and CJD would be to inject BSE-infected material directly into a human.

BBC: Doubt cast on BSE-CJD link

In December 1995, Mr Hogg tried to reassure the public about the safety of beef by attempting to get experts from the Spongiform Encephalopathy Advisory Committee (SEAC) -- the government's advisory committee on mad cow disease -- to back his statements.

CNN: Britain's BSE: Where the blame is laid