Farmers who have acted illegally and spread foot-and-mouth disease will not receive compensation for destroyed animals, the North's Agriculture Minister said yesterday.
During a briefing to the Assembly's Agriculture Committee, Mrs Brid Rodgers said her Department would soon be able to pay compensation to farmers whose livestock had been destroyed.
But Mrs Rodgers warned: "We will be taking a long hard look at all claimants of this compensation to ensure that we are not paying money to anyone who was in any way wittingly responsible for this outbreak."
She said her Department had completed investigations into those behind illegal trading of infected animals which prompted the outbreak, and had passed papers to the RUC.
All animals in the one confirmed case of foot-and-mouth at a farm in Meigh, south Armagh, and those in contact with them have been slaughtered or incinerated, about 2,500 in all.
Speaking later on BBC Radio Ulster, Mrs Rodgers said a small number of farmers had been "culpable of actions irresponsible enough to spread this disease" and had then refused to co-operate with investigations.
A spokesman for the Department said it was working to get a range of compensation payments to farmers whose animals had been slaughtered, but in cases where there was suspicion the onus was on the farmer to prove the animals were "legitimate".
Mrs Rodgers said she had visited her Department's office in Newry and was happy to say that most of farmers in the area were co-operating with its investigations.
The Minister said she was not optimistic that farmers other than those whose herds had been slaughtered could be compensated. She conceded there had been much "consequential loss" to the industry, and any compensation for it would have to come from the British exchequer.
The Minister for Social Development said he was extending indefinitely the seven-day restriction on his officials visiting farms. Mr Maurice Morrow said officials dealing with social security, housing and child support would not be making home visits, and those collecting unemployment benefit would not need to sign on at DSD offices.
The Minister for Culture, Arts and Leisure welcomed the Ice Hockey Superleague's appeal to people not to come to its British final, due to take place in Belfast's Odyssey Arena tonight. However, Mr Michael McGimpsey said he was still very concerned at the league's decision to stage the final.