Farmers warn of jobs disaster over foot-and-mouth

FARMING leaders have warned that thousands of jobs could be at risk in the coming months unless foot-and-mouth disease is finally stamped out.

In his annual "state of the industry" statement, Ben Gill, president of the National Farmers' Union, called on the Government to boost its efforts to eradicate finally the epidemic and help save farm jobs in the worst-affected areas.

His comments come two months after Tony Blair's statement on 4 May that the battle against foot-and-mouth was "on the home straight".

However, three new cases are still being found each day and almost 3.5 million animals have been slaughtered, according to latest figures from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).

Speaking last night as two new outbreaks were recorded in Cumbria, Mr Gill said urgent action was needed during the summer to fight a disease which thrives in cold weather. He called for extra government funds to set up an electronic tagging system to track animal movements. He also warned that some farming practices would have to change in the wake of foot-and-mouth - especially the sheep industry's reliance on large-scale livestock movements.

His warning came as the Queen paid tribute to the efforts of the Army in helping to bring the disease under control.

On a visit to Craigiehall Barracks in West Lothian yesterday she said: "The Army has turned its hand with great expertise and willing hearts to this unpleasant task, helping to fight the disease and bring it closer, we now hope, towards an end."

The latest concern over farming jobs follows a claim last month by the British Veterinary Association that rural vets could lose their jobs because the animals they normally treat have been wiped out in the epidemic.

Tourism has also been hit. Devon alone estimates it has lost a third of its income this year to the disease - around 357 million - and potentially 11,000 jobs. The figure for the whole country is projected at around 2.5 billion.

P An average of three new cases have been recorded every day of the last two weeks, bringing the number of foot-and-mouth cases to 1,807. The number of premises on which animals have been slaughtered, or are due to be, today stands at 8,498.

The latest figures from Defra's "slaughter and disposal" database show that a total of 3,453,000 animals have been slaughtered (545,000 cattle, 2,778,000 sheep, 128,000 pigs, 2,000 goats), with a further 14,000 awaiting slaughter.

Of those already slaughtered, 16,000 remain to be disposed of. A further 1,579 animals in England are awaiting slaughter pending appeal.

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