NI movement restrictions relaxed

Farms still off-limits while many venues open

Northern Ireland's agriculture minister has announced the removal of some of the restrictions which have been used to stop the spread of foot-and-mouth disease.

Brid Rodgers said it was time to allow some degree of normal life to return to rural areas as the level of risk within the province had now dropped.

Only one outbreak of the livestock disease was discovered in the province, at Meigh, in south Armagh on 1 March.

Brid Rodgers: "Public and farmers must still take care"

Announcing the guidelines at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon, Mrs Rodgers encouraged people to start visiting the countryside again, but urged them to behave sensibly.

She said: "These guidelines make it clear that the risk has not disappeared.

"But they suggest that there is no longer any real reason why most public amenities should not re-open, or why people should not visit the countryside, provided they continue behave sensibly and avoid visiting farms or going near livestock."

She added: "The only areas that people should continue to avoid are the ten kilometre surveillance zones around the Meigh and Proleek outbreaks."

However, Mrs Rodgers said while many public amenities would be able to re-open, this would not immediately apply to every venue.

She also urged farmers to maintain their fortress farming policy.

One of the first tourist attractions to open under the new measures was Northern Ireland's most popular - the natural phenomenon the Giant's Causeway in County Antrim.

Some government controlled angling waters are also to be re-opened.

Concern in Irish Republic

Meanwhile, there were concerns in the Irish Republic on Wednesday evening about a farm in County Louth, not far from the only Irish outbreak.

Irish agriculture department officials said they were "concerned" about sheep on the farm.

A spokesman said: "Samples have been taken from sheep and are being sent to foot-and-mouth experts in Pirbright, Surrey.

"We expect to hear the results of an analysis of the samples by Friday."

Earlier, Irish agriculture minister Joe Walsh confirmed that a meat plant in Wexford has been closed after three lambs were discovered to have mouth lesions.

The department is still waiting for the results of tests on a sheep carcass at a meat plant near Gorey in County Wexford.

Officials have said the tests are precautionary.

Mr Walsh also announced a ban on feeding pigs swill.

The Irish Republic's only case was confirmed at a farm just across the border from south Armagh, at Proleek in Ravensdale, County Louth.

In the Irish Republic, 18,000 sheep, 600 cattle and 29 goats have been culled in County Louth. Outside the county 4,505 sheep and 360 cattle have been culled.

Export move 'under threat'

Meanwhile, Ulster Unionist MEP Jim Nicholson has called on Mrs Rodgers to immediately resolve the dispute over the burial of animals to be culled in an extended precuationary slaughter in south Armagh.

On Wednesday, Mrs Rodgers re-emphasised that the lifting of the European export ban on Northern Ireland animal products could be jeopardised by farmers' refusal to co-operate with an extended precautionary cull of sheep on the Cooley Peninsula in the Meigh restriction zone.

The European Commission has granted regional status to Northern Ireland, enabling all areas, except the Newry and Mourne district where the province's single outbreak was found, to resume exports.

The wider cull was postponed on Tuesday after farmers protested against plans to bury 2,500 dead sheep at the south Armagh beauty spot Slieve Gullion Forest Park.

The cull is to affect sheep on farms in the three-kilometre radius of the outbreak at Meigh.

More than 3,000 animals have already been slaughtered on neighbouring farms.

There have been two meetings between agriculture officials and farmers representatives.

The farmers believe they have persuaded the department against the Slieve Gullion burial plan, however, no alternative site has been put foreard and the cull has not yet commenced.

Mrs Rodgers earlier said she had not ruled out any options on how the carcasses would be disposed.

The planned cull is part of a joint effort by the Northern Ireland Republic of Ireland governments to try to stamp out foot-and-mouth disease.

Across the UK there have now been more than 700 outbreaks.

The Department of Agriculture can be contacted on its helpline numbers on 02890 524279 or 02890 524590 between 0830 - 2100 GMT.