Day 107 - 24 Mar 95 - Page 15
1 MR. MORRIS: "In January 1991 a number of people suffered food
2 poisoning after eating burgers from McDonald's in
3 Friargate, Preston. Some had severe medical problems
4 requiring hospitalisation. McDonald's refused to admit
5 responsibility, despite a Public Health Laboratory Official
6 report into the incidents identifying the company, which
7 concluded that 'the problem may not have been completely
8 restricted to that single branch or to a single hamburger
9 chain'.
10
11 Survivors of the outbreak only received some compensation
12 without admission of liability after strenuous and lengthy
13 efforts". They further admitted: "The cause of the food
14 poisoning outbreak was under-cooking of burgers
15 contaminated by E.coli 0157: H bacteria. Following this
16 incident McDonald's increased their cooking time for beef
17 patties".
18
19 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Now just listen to me, Mr. Morris and I would
20 like Ms. Steel to listen to me as well. As you go through
21 what you are actually going to put to the witness, what
22 I suggest is you make a mark so that when you leave court
23 today you remember it. You must then consider, if you
24 think that what you are putting, as a matter of fact, adds
25 to what you have so far pleaded, that is originally by the
26 amendment I gave leave for a week or two ago, if you think
27 it adds to that in some respect, you can ask my leave to
28 amend to add that allegation.
29
30 If I give leave to amend, to add that allegation (and I may
31 do so) you can see whether that be it additional or just
32 more specific allegation is admitted by McDonald's. If you
33 do that in respect of each matter of fact which is there,
34 you may not need to call any maker of the report.
35
36 If I give you leave to amend to add these matters, and they
37 are not admitted, then you have to think what evidence you
38 want to seek to call in relation to those matters of fact.
39 I am saying that so that you can remember just what it is
40 that you think you want to get in by evidence and expert
41 evidence, expert witness's comment on it, in the future.
42
43 Put your specific suggestion. Do try to get some technical
44 advice on this, because I am not persuaded by the argument
45 that you have put forward so far but, for all I know, if
46 you went to a competent solicitor or member of the Bar,
47 among the people who have helped you, they may well come up
48 with an argument which I have not thought of in relation to
49 it. If you think it is really important, I know you may
50 not have help on tap all the time -- you told me that you
51 do not, that it is sporadic -- I invited you before to try
52 to get some help on this and I invite you to again.
53
54 MR. RAMPTON: My Lord, may I make suggestion -- I hope it is
55 helpful -- Mr. North will have to come back at some date in
56 the future to be cross-examined about the pesticides and
57 other residue questions. It might be sensible, rather than
58 Mr. Morris, as it were, seeking now in a way which is going
59 to spend a lot of time probably getting nowhere, searching
60 that document for a question to ask, might it not be better
