As Conservative agriculture minister, Mr Gummer achieved notoriety in 1990 by feeding a hamburger to his six-year-old daughter Cordelia.

Richard Wilson reports: "A keenly-awaited witness"

His actions were intended to reassure the public, but rebounded when the government was forced to admit a connection between the cattle epidemic and the human disease new variant CJD.

The BBC's Margaret Gilmore: "Mr Gummer points out that he was not a scientist"

In written evidence to the inquiry prior to appearing in person on Tuesday, Mr Gummer says: "Although I had the benefit of the advice of the leading experts in the field, I am not myself a scientist.

"In matters as important as these it is essential to have a personal benchmark to be applied to decisions wherever appropriate.

"In such circumstances I applied the test, 'Would I be entirely happy for my children to eat this?'

"That seemed to me to be the proper question for a non-expert to ask when assessing the views of experts."

BSE funding was cut-back at the Treasury's request, Mr Gummer reveals

Mr Gummer, who held the post of agriculture minister from 1989 to 1993, is the latest in a string of former Tory ministers to appear before the BSE inquiry.

Like Stephen Dorrell and William Waldegrave last week, Mr Gummer said he acted in line with best scientific advice available at the time.

But he admits to having to scale back plans for work on BSE in 1989 in the face of Treasury pressure.

He says: "The chief secretary [to the Treasury] questioned the realism of the bids on BSE and salmonella, suggesting that they assumed a higher incidence of reported cases than experience suggested.

"I replied that there were real fears of risks to public safety on these issues.

"Recent laboratory work had indicated that BSE might be transmitted from one animal to another which had raised public concern in spite of the fact that there was no evidence that BSE could be transmitted to humans.

"MAFF did agree to reduce the bid for salmonella and BSE related funding. If I had thought that these concessions would have adversely affected MAFF's ability to deal with BSE, I would not have made them.

"While I was always conscious of the public health position, I also considered it essential to keep a tight hold on rationality."

Mr Gummer insisted that throughout his time at the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, he put people before other considerations.

"My first principle as minister at MAFF was that the customer and the consumer came first.

"I re-organised ministerial responsibilities so that I made a clear division between consumer interests and the food, farming and fishery industries.