Foot-and-mouth disease

Sir, - At the end of Denis Staunton's European Diary (The Irish Times, March 27th), on the future of rightist parties in Europe…

Sir, - At the end of Denis Staunton's European Diary (The Irish Times, March 27th), on the future of rightist parties in Europe, he refers - totally out of context - to Austria's ban of "all Irish meat and diary imports". For the sake of truth and objectivity, I must point out that on March 22nd the European Commission made a decision "concerning certain protection measures with regard to foot-and-mouth disease in Ireland" providing, among others, that "Ireland shall not dispatch" from the infected area of Co Louth explicitly enumerated items of livestock, meat and diary products.

This decision, which also stipulates that "member-states shall amend the measures which they apply to trade so as to bring them into compliance with this decision", was ratified the following day by the EU veterinary committee on which all member-states are represented.

Like all other member-states, Austria is complying with this decision. As your Agribusiness Correspondent correctly reported in your issue of March 28th, this export ban imposed on GB and Ireland has in the meantime been extended by the EU veterinary committee until April 19th. - Yours, etc.,

Susanne Bachfischer, Minister Counsellor, Austrian Embassy, Dublin.