Foot-and-mouth control measures aimed at preventing the disease re-entering the State from Britain will remain until the international veterinary organisation (OIE) ratifies Britain as free of the disease, the Department of Agriculture said yesterday.
Britain had expected to be clear on January 1st, 90 days after the last outbreak, but blood tests on two sheep in Northumberland have prevented the international controls being lifted. The herd in question has been slaughtered.
A spokesman for the disease control centre in Newcastle-upon-Tyne said the antibodies found by the test did not mean that the sheep had foot-and-mouth disease, but all precautions were being taken.
Most of Britain has now been declared free of the foot-and-mouth disease which hit 2,030 herds of animals and brought about the slaughter of 3.9 million animals for disease control purposes and a further two million for welfare reasons.
However, the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development said in Dublin last night that controls at British ports, which are being paid for by the Irish taxpayer, would remain in place until a further review of the situation.
He said controls would also remain in place on the import of livestock from Northern Ireland which was only allowed enter the Republic at designated Border crossings.
Last week the Minister for Agriculture, Mr Walsh, announced that the two main controls on the movements of animals within the State would remain in force at least until the end of January.