EU veterinary officials met yesterday to discuss the latest data on mad cow disease, including selective slaughter programmes and the safety of milk.
The EU's Standing Veterinary Committee was due on the second day of a regular meeting to examine a British study which found that Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) - known as mad cow disease - could be passed on to calves.
The study raised the possibility that more animals would have to be slaughtered to stamp out BSE, but said that only 1 per cent of British cows passed on the disease to their calves.
The officials were also expected to discuss a report by Oxford University scientists which disagreed about the need for a mass cull, predicting that mad cow disease would be over by 2001 even without such action.
"It's quite possible the Oxford report will be discussed even though it wasn't on the agenda", a Commission official said before the meeting.
In London, British officials played down media reports yesterday that the government might abandon the planned slaughter of 147,000 cattle to eliminate the disease, saying no decision had been taken.
In Brussels, European Commission and British officials said they did not expect any decisions or conclusions to come out of the EU veterinary meeting.
Also on the agenda were the Commission's latest BSE inspection visits to Britain and Portugal as well as a French plan to eradicate the disease, including EU aid for farmers.
Meanwhile, the British Prime Minister, Mr Major, yesterday confirmed the government was reviewing the case for reducing the cattle cull. However, he refused to predict the outcome of today's cabinet meeting when the latest scientific evidence is to be discussed.
Mr Major made his comments during a tour of Portbury Docks at Avonmouth. Asked if he would be reducing the numbers of cattle going to slaughter he said: "We are going to look at policy on beef because two things have happened since we last examined it.
"Firstly, we have more scientific evidence on maternal transmission and that clearly needs examination.
Secondly, we have recent evidence from scientists of the success in reducing the incidence of BSE as a result of the decisions we took in 1988 and 1989.
So those are two new material facts, but we have to consider them. There is no preordained outcome. What we are doing is considering it and we will no doubt wish to consult with the European Union and then we will make a final decision.
"Nobody should expect snap decisions but it is right to examine and make sure the policy is correct in the light of new information we now have", he added.
The government was layer warned to honour its commitment to Brussels over the selective slaughter of high risk cattle - or risk prolonging the ban on British beef exports even further.
As Mr Major prepared to review the slaughter plan with his cabinet colleagues, EU officials insisted there was no going back on the deal agreed at the European summit in Florence in June.