London - The British government has defended its handling of the foot-and-mouth crisis in one of the worst affected areas of the country following a report which described it as "lamentable".
A report published yesterday after a week-long hearing in Devon earlier this month, made a total of 31 suggestions, including the need for a national contingency plan to cope with any future outbreak.
The junior agriculture minister, Lord Whitty, later conceded there was such a plan in place, but that it was only known internally.
