Source: AAP
British
officials admitted today that there was little prospect of a quick end to the
foot-and-mouth crisis, as the number of confirmed cases shot up to 107.
After
saying earlier this week that the highly infectious virus seemed to be stabilising,
the country's chief veterinary officer, Jim Scudamore, had to admit there was
probably more to come.
"We will not see the disease disappearing at the
end of this week and this outbreak is going to last for a long time," Scudamore
said.
He delivered his bleak forecast after the number of confirmed outbreaks
in Britain rose to 107, and he declined to predict when the crisis would end.
"If, over a period of weeks, the daily figure starts to go down then that
might be an indication of a peak," he said.
The 15 new cases of foot-and-mouth
confirmed yesterday, including four in previously unaffected counties, and 11
more cases today, effectively ended faint hopes that the disease had been contained.
Agriculture minister Nick Brown said it was disappointing that the spread
of the disease now appeared to be much wider than was originally thought.
Scudamore
said the biggest problem was that the disease seemed to be spreading most rapidly
among cattle which have come into contact with sheep carrying the virus.
He
added that 89,000 animals had now been earmarked for slaughter of which 61,000
had already been culled.
In the House of Commons, Britain's lower house
of parliament, the opposition Conservatives said there was "growing public concern"
about the government's policy of destroying the animals and asked if vaccinations
were being considered.
Brown said the agricultural industry and the veterinary
profession spoke with one voice on that subject.
"They advise against
the use of vaccination. They advise against letting the disease run its course.
"They firmly support the approach the government is taking, which is to
contain movement of animals to prevent the disease spreading."
Foot-and-mouth
is not harmful to humans and only sometimes kills animals, but it is an economic
nightmare. The virus is highly contagious and infected animals lose weight and
therefore value.
"I've seen it stated that foot-and-mouth is like flu
in animals. The advice to me very strongly is that it is not and the fatalities
it causes in lambs are substantial," Brown added.
A total of 144 farms
were still under restrictions pending on-going investigations, he said, while
68 premises had already been classified as "dangerous contacts" with animals being
destroyed.
On Tuesday, Scudamore had appeared cautiously optimistic when
he said the government's decision to ban the movement of all livestock on February
23, four days after the outbreak, seemed to be producing results.
The
disease has led to exclusion zones being set up around farms, country parks and
zoos, ramblers have been told to keep off country paths, rural pursuits have been
called off and people living in towns and cities have been urged not to go into
the countryside.
Among the most high-profile events affected have been
Six Nations rugby matches between Ireland and England, Scotland and Wales, which
have all been postponed.
Next week's Cheltenham festival, one of the highlights
of the horse racing calendar, has also been postponed until late April.
Experts
claimed that decision could cost up to STG10 million ($28.94 million) in lost
trade, and union leaders have warned that more than 52,000 jobs in abattoirs and
meat processing centres are now at risk. |
