Should the footpaths be closed?

Farmers in the so-called "Protected Zone" around the infected sites in Surrey have complained that footpaths across their land are still open, in contrast to the 2001 outbreak, when footpaths across the country were closed to stop the spread of the disease. But the closure of thousands of miles of footpaths in Britain six years ago was blamed for shutting down the countryside and inflicting damage on the rural economy and later found to have minimal benefit in halting the virus.

As a result, the current Defra contingency plan only allows the closure of footpaths within 3km of the infected premises, the Protected Zone, and then only on the advice of vets and animal health inspectors, who are advised to use their powers "sparingly". When the Protected Zones were set up in Surrey over the weekend, vets decided that some footpaths could remain open.

Should Britain vaccinate now?

If the number of cases in the current outbreak of foot and mouth increases and vets suspect animal-to-animal transmission, the Government will come under pressure to order vaccination against the virus. Under the Animal Health Act (2002), the Government has a duty to consider vaccination and the contingency plan for foot-and-mouth says that vaccination should be possible within five days of the first outbreak, in other words, Wednesday, August 8.

To prepare a possible vaccination, Defra has already ordered 300,000 doses of vaccine and Genus, a private animal health company, is on standby to start a so-called "vaccination-to-live" plan. Unlike Argentina and Bolivia, where farmers routinely vaccinate against foot-and-mouth, the European Union forbids the use of vaccines unless there is an outbreak.

There are reservations about ordering a mass vaccination, which would be expensive, complicated and can obscure the symptoms of the disease. It is also unclear if the meat from vaccinated animals would have to be labelled as such and whether people would want to eat it. Professor Matt Keeling, from the University of Warwick, has modelled possible foot-and-mouth vaccination plans in the UK and says the Government is right to hold off vaccination if it thinks it can control the virus without it. The Government decided ten times not to vaccinate during the 2001 outbreak.

Will there be a meat shortage?

The big supermarket chains have contingency plans for foot-and-mouth outbreaks and both Asda and Tesco's insist that despite the movement ban on livestock meat supplies will not be interrupted, with international imports able to take up the slack. Stuart Roberts, of the British Meat Processors Association, said that a week without slaughter, because of the movement ban, would start to affect his members, while Graham Bidston, of the National Federation of Meat and Food Traders told MeatInfo.co.uk: “Meat will still be widely available but from different sources. The consumers that will suffer will be those looking for locally sourced, or even organic meat.”

Who will get compensation and how much?

Around 200 cattle have been slaughtered so far to control the spread of the disease and farmers receive compensation from the Government for each animal they lose. They can opt for an offer from the Government or have their stock valued independently, which most did during the 2001 epidemic. Less than 10 per cent of farmers are insured against foot-and-mouth.

In 2001, compensation varied from month to month, with average prices reaching £1,689 per head of cattle in June and £292 per sheep in July. A total of £2.5 billion was paid to 9,000 farmers, although the Government was criticised for not giving compensation to those who suffered the secondary effects of the disease, estimated at a further £900m by the National Farmers Union. If the source of the current outbreak is proven to be one of the two research laboratories at Pirbright, the Pride family, whose farm was the first to be infected, have said they intend to take legal action for further damages.

Explore UK News

• Crime News

• Education News

• Health News

• Scotland News

Times Recommends

• What makes the perfect mum?
• To keep me stress-free, no more awareness days, please
• What do lottery winners buy?