Quarantine procedures are to be tightened for birds entering Britain after two parrots died of avian flu in the UK, the Environment Secretary said today.

Margaret Beckett announced a review of the rules a week after the two exotic birds held in quarantine in Essex tested positive for the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu, which can be lethal to humans.

Last Sunday, Chief Veterinary Officer Dr Debby Reynolds announced an investigation into how the birds, from South America, may have caught the virus.

Doubts have been cast on thetheory that they caught it from Taiwanese birds which were sharing the same compound, after the Taiwanese authorities insisted that there had been no bird flu outbreaks there.

Ms Beckett said today that Professor Nigel Dimmock, Emeritus Professor of Virology at Warwick University, will lead the independent review in avian quarantine and suggest ways in which the system could be improved.

He will look into the procedure of importing birds, biosecurity measures within quarantine, the period of quarantine and how birds are held in transit.

Prof Dimmock will also examine the roles of Defra, HM Customs and Revenue as well as local authorities.

Mrs Beckett said: "I recognise that the public is concerned about avian flu. We want to ensure that in this evolving disease situation our quarantine rules and procedures are as secure as possible.

"That is why we want an independent assessment of the quarantine system’s effectiveness against avian flu."

She went on: "The importation of wild birds is currently suspended and all birds currently in quarantine are being assessed on a case by case basis. This review will be carried out during that suspension."

Prof Dimmock has been asked to report back to Dr Reynolds in a month’s time.

The Government has already introduced a ban on the sale and display of birds at markets, shows and fairs around England, with separate arrangements for Scotland and Wales.

Earlier today, the Tories demanded to know whether birds which could have been infected with avian flu had left the quarantine centre in Essex.

Shadow agriculture secretary Oliver Letwin warned that pet owners and Britain’s poultry flock could be at risk if they did.

"If birds which were infected have escaped, if they are not rapidly traced, if their paths are such that they could have come into the poultry flock, then there would be a significant risk of a widespread outbreak," he said.

Shadow minister James Paice wrote to Mrs Beckett asking if any birds had escaped on Friday but has not yet received a reply.

"Either there were and they are desperately trying to trace them or they don’t know," Mr Paice said.

Birds from the same batch as the parrots were reportedly taken out and put on sale before their 30-day quarantine period ended.

"There were more than 400 birds in quarantine. I don’t know how many were taken out early," a source told the Daily Mail.

Conservatives want an "amnesty" for anyone who may have handled birds illegally to help combat any spread.

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