A MEAT inspector was kidnapped by abattoir staff and thrown into a vat of potentially dangerous waste animal parts, a House of Commons motion claims.

In a motion raised by six Labour MPs, it claims that the Meat Hygiene Service official was subjected to the ordeal after he called at Rose County Foods in Sawley to carry out an inspection.

And it calls on the Crown Prosecution Service to justify its "utterly irresponsible decision not to prosecute five employees" who were cautioned by police.

The motion claims that the official was subjected to such intimidation and threats when he called at the firm that he escaped through a window to avoid physical attack.

The motion says the inspector was then followed to a local cafe, kidnapped, bundled into the back of the car and taken back to the firm.

There he was thrown into a vat of waste meat products which the motions describes as "specified risk material" that could have included "head, spinal cord, tonsil, spleen, thymus and intestine material."

The motion, signed by Workington MP Dale Campbell-Savours and five other Labour MPs, says the Director of Public Prosecutions should "in the extraordinary circumstances of this case make it known why his officials failed to prosecute for offences which have been the subject of repeated stricture by Ministers and endless debate in Parliament".

A separate Commons motion, also put down by Mr Campbell-Savours and five other MPs, claims that Rose County Foods has been charged with contravention of the Specified Risk Material Regulations in relation to BSE enforcement and will appear before Blackburn magistrates on February 1.

Mr Mick Robinson, managing director of Rose County Foods, said the firm had changed hands since the alleged assault on the meat inspector.

"The incident occurred before we took over the firm last August and it would be inappropriate for me to comment on something that happened under the old management," he said. He also declined to comment on whether Rose County Foods would be defending itself against allegations that it had breached regulations regarding the handling of meat.

"I believe the court case has been postponed and at this stage I am not saying whether or not we will be denying the charges," he said.

Peter Tidey, crown prosecutor for Burnley, said the CPS had never received a file on the matter.

"It is not believed that this is a matter that the Crown Prosecution Service has ever advised on. I believe the CPS has been mistakenly named in the House of Commons motion," he said.

A spokesman for Lancashire Constabulary described the incident was a "prank that misfired."

"It seems it was the inspector's last day at work and the intention had been to dunk him in a vat of water. It was a prank that misfired. The five men were cautioned by police and the firm gave assurances that such incidents would never happen again," he said.

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