If Taiwan's newly signed protocol with the United States on opening its market wider to U.S. beef from cattle younger than 30 months is an international treaty, it should be approved by the Legislative Yuan before it takes effect, a legislative official said Thursday. Liu Han-ting, head of the Legislative Yuan's Organic Laws and Statutes Bureau, made the remarks while fielding questions at a legislative committee session. During the session, ruling Kuomintang Legislator Lu Hsueh-chang said that as the new Taiwan-U.S. beef trade protocol is closely related to the people's rights and health, it should be screened by the legislature. According to a previous ruling by the Council of Grand Justices, Liu said, written documents signed with a foreign country, regardless of its designation or name, should be screened by the legislature if its provisions are related to the people's rights or concern national interests and major affairs. Even if the new protocol is merely an administrative accord, it should still be sent to the legislature, according to Liu. 'But so far, we have not yet received any document or notice from the executive branch,' Liu added. The Cabinet-level Department of Health (DOH) announced Oct. 23 that Taiwan would expand market access for U.S. beef after officials of the two countries clinched an accord the previous day in Washington, D.C., to lift a partial ban on U.S. beef imports. Under the terms of the new accord, U.S. bone-in beef, ground beef, intestines, brains, spinal cords and processed beef from cattle younger than 30 months that have not been contaminated with 'specific risk materials' will be allowed to enter Taiwan starting Nov. 10. Specific risk materials are defined in the protocol as brains, skulls, eyes, trigeminal ganglia, spinal cords, vertebral columns and dorsal root ganglia from cattle 30 months of age and older, or tonsils and the distal ileum of the small intestine from cattle of all ages. At present, Taiwan only allows imports of U.S. boneless beef from cattle younger than 30 months that contain no specified risk materials. The new market-opening decision has since drawn flak from opposition parties, consumer rights activists, lawmakers and even city and county officials. In the face of mounting criticism, Premier Wu Den-yih said Thursday that the government will see to it that U.S. beef offal and ground beef does not appear on Taiwan's market, but he did not elaborate on technical details. DOH Minister Yaung Chih-liang also said the same day that if U.S. beef offal and ground beef is shipped to Taiwan, his department will inspect each case to check whether the products are contaminated with any bacteria or viruses and said any products that fail the inspections will not be allowed to enter the local market. 