Barometer | 17 January 2013

Equine dining

Horsemeat was found in hamburgers sold by Tesco, among others. Why did eating horses become a taboo?

— In the 8th century Pope Gregory III instructed St Boniface, missionary to Germany, to forbid the eating of horseflesh to those he converted to Christianity.
— There has been no tradition of eating horsemeat in Britain, where ‘I could eat a horse’ is as an expression of desperate hunger.
— Horsemeat has a slightly sweet taste, like a cross between beef and venison.
— Abattoirs have become the principal means of disposal of unwanted horses in Ireland. They are also subject to seizure by local authorities, which sent 589 horses to slaughter in 2010.

Shock the vote

We are often told that referendums are not part of the British system. Which countries have held the most in the past 50 years?

Drugs bust

The all-party Parliamentary Committee on drugs called for possession of small amounts of drugs for personal use to be decriminalised. But what actually happens to people caught in possession of drugs? In the 12 months up to September last year…
– 35,700 were cautioned.
– 15,900 were issued with penalty notices.
– And of those who were instead charged and convicted in the courts…

Source: Ministry of Justice