The British government will relieve pressure on the country's food chain by permitting the movement of unaffected animals under strict licence.
The Agriculture Minister, Mr Nick Brown, will introduce regulations allowing animals from disease-free farms to go direct to slaughter or collection centres on production of a declaration that the animals are free from foot-and-mouth disease.
Farm leaders, who have predicted the crisis could cost the farming and food industries £775 million sterling if not brought under control within three months, welcomed the move; particularly in the light of yesterday's confirmation that food inspectors had discovered potentially infected tissue in Dutch and German imports, in apparent breach of BSE rules.
The president of the British farmers' union, Mr Ben Gill, said they had been working with the Ministry and the Chief Veterinary Officer, Mr Jim Scudamore, to ensure the plan could be implemented without compromising efforts to stamp out the disease.
"This will be some help in alleviating the growing animal welfare problems resulting from the backlog of animals on farms, as well as helping to lessen the acute financial difficulties of farmers," he said.
But as the total number of confirmed British cases, excluding Northern Ireland, climbed to 39, the Conservative spokesman, Mr Tim Yeo, urged the government to proceed with caution and under advice.
Mr Scudamore coupled yesterday's promised relaxation with confirmation that 26 livestock markets may have to be put under restrictions and subjected to a strict disinfection scheme.
While the disease was so far known to have spread either on the wind, through animal movements or by being trodden farm to farm by animals or humans, he said, it might also linger in markets animals had previously passed through.
Lara Marlowe, in Paris, adds:
The French Ministry of Agriculture has portrayed its temporary ban on the sale of Irish livestock as a reinforcement of restrictions on movement already put in place by Dublin.
"They are aware that the Irish are not exporting live animals," a source in contact with the French ministry said. "So their ban is irrelevant. What they are worried about is road traders."
In addition to importation of Irish livestock, a French ministry circular forbids the market sale of all live sheep, cattle and pigs, whatever the origin of the animals, as a precaution against the spread of foot-and-mouth disease. Dublin has received assurances that if no cases of the disease are found in the Republic within eight days, the French ban will be lifted. The French have for the time being been dissuaded from imposing a blanket ban on all Irish food products, but are concerned that 248 Northern lambs slaughtered in Roscommon may have been sent to France.
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