Foot-and-mouth disease

Sir, - I must record my absolute astonishment, on arrival at Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris, from Dublin, two weeks ago, when…

Sir, - I must record my absolute astonishment, on arrival at Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris, from Dublin, two weeks ago, when France was technically clear of foot and mouth, to find no precautions whatsoever at the airport: no notices, no announcements, no disinfectant mats, nothing. Passengers from all over England were tramping through the airport, and only the very conscientious would have asked to report for disinfectant. With this total lack of controls, I thought it only a matter of time that the disease would appear in that country, and sure enough, within 10 days the inevitable happened.

The contrast between the attitude at Dublin Airport and that at Charles de Gaulle could not have been more stark. Aer Lingus cabin crew handed passengers a leaflet at the top of the aircraft steps and made announcements before landing, and Dublin Airport went through all the routines with which we are now familiar. I fully appreciate the huge logistical difficulty in keeping the infection out of France, but surely something could have been done, particularly at ports and airports handling passengers from Britain.

While we may feel that some of our precautions are a little "over the top", this is surely better than the complete negligence which one sees in other countries in tackling this problem. - Yours, etc.,

Dennis Aylmer, Knocksink, Enniskerry, Co Wicklow.

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Sir, - Is it naive to suggest there is inconsistency when it comes to the EU's admonishment of individual member-states?

Recently, Ireland was heavily criticised by the EU in a most public manner for our Government's economic policies. Why, then, is the EU putting no pressure on the British Government in the light of its handling of the foot-and-mouth crisis?

Judging from the distinct lack of interest the British Government showed in the foot-and-mouth outbreak, one might be excused for believing that it was more interested in debating the pros and cons of fox hunting than in protecting the national herd.

Isn't it about time our own Government put pressure on the EU to make some comment on the laissez-faire manner in which the British Government approached the epidemic? After all, if the number of confirmed cases in British continues to rise at the present rate, it is only a matter of time before we too begin to suffer the consequences of an indifferent approach to a potential catastrophe - Yours, etc.,

Ciaran Lynch, Chairperson, Labour Party, (Ballyphehane Branch), Glencurrig, Cork.

A chara, - There have been some mutterings about over-reaction to the foot-and-mouth crisis; the closed parks, the empty stadiums and the martyrdom of our St Patrick's Day celebrations. It is my belief, though, that the way in which Government, business and public have presented a united front against the spread of the disease is a much finer example of real patriotism than I have seen at any St Patrick's Day parade. - Yours, etc.,

Shane T. Odlum, Blackrock, Co Dublin.