Northern Ireland's farmers remain on tenterhooks aftertwo new suspected cases of foot-and-mouth were discovered last night.
Samples have been sent to for testing and final results are expected early next week. Preliminary results are no longer issued.
Stormont agriculture minister Ms Bríd Rodgers said her officials were concerned about animals on a farm in Ballintoy, Co Antrim, and a herd of cattle in Ardboe, Co Tyrone.
Both cases were linked, she said, to the North's second and third outbreaks of the disease confirmed last week in Cushendall, Co Antrim, and on a dairy farm in Ardboe.
The British Ministry of Agriculture is under fire tonight for its handling of the foot-and-mouth crisis after an error led to the unnecessary slaughter of 500 sheep.
Meanwhile the number of confirmed foot-and-mouth cases on the UK mainland and Northern Ireland rose by three to 1,411.
Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Maff) vets killed 300 lambs and 200 ewes as part of the firebreak zone to prevent the spread of the disease in Cumbria.
Following the slaughter at Punderland Farm in Little Clifton it emerged that an error in the grid reference number meant the animals should not have been killed and the Maff vets should have been miles away.
Additional reporting PA