The Minister for Agriculture has said he will not ease controls until 30 days after the last confirmed outbreak in Britain. Mr Walsh was speaking as pressure continues to mount from tourism and other sectors for an easing of restrictions.
However, at Dublin Airport yesterday, he announced the establishment of a special committee, chaired by Prof Michael Monaghan, dean of UCD's veterinary faculty, to advise him on the appropriateness of adapting controls within the State to developments as they happen.
He said that because there was no case of the disease in the Republic and the one case in the North had been confined, he could refine the measures and controls over the coming weeks should this position continue.
"However, I have to say there can be no let-up in controls whatsoever and we are insisting on adherence to those controls," he said. While no symptoms have been reported in any farm animal in the Republic, the UK epidemic worsened considerably yesterday with the single biggest increase in confirmed cases, now approaching 130.
"This coming week will tell us whether or not food-and-mouth disease has entered the country because the incubation time will have reached that phase in susceptible animals brought in before 21st February.
"In about 10 days' time in the event of there being no further cases in the North, it may be possible that the island of Ireland be declared free of the disease," Mr Walsh said.
It was possible at that stage that the European Veterinary Committee might declare the entire island as a disease-free zone, he said. "The level of the disease in Britain remains frighteningly high and creates a dangerous overhang to our operations here which must be viewed as a real and current danger to this country."
It was announced, meanwhile, that a herd of 150 sheep in Co Mayo which may have been imported from the North before the ban on imports will be slaughtered as a precautionary measure today. There are now 663 farms restricted in the Republic as the Department processes 2,000 calls a day.