Foot-and-mouth restraints lifted

The foot-and-mouth outbreak originated at Pirbright in Surrey

Foot-and-mouth restrictions have finally been lifted in Surrey more than a year after the outbreak.

Surrey County Council said areas around Egham and Old Windsor were now free of the disease and the remaining restraints had been removed.

Eight farms were infected with the disease which escaped from laboratories run by the government at Pirbright in August 2007.

The outbreak cost farmers millions due to restrictions on livestock movements.

Trading standards director Peter Denard said: "The remaining restrictions were removed today and to be able to say to the public that the countryside is open to all again is very welcome news, especially as it has taken more than a year to get to this point."

We recognise the good work that Local Authorities do in dealing with disease outbreaks and the close cooperation we have developed with them Defra

Mr Denard said he was frustrated that the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) had not reimbursed the authority for extra costs associated with the outbreak.

He added: "The farming community and the local authority will have to live with the financial implications of the outbreak even longer, which has left us frustrated and disappointed.

"The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) decided not to reimburse the county council and its partners for all the additional work we carried out in successfully containing the initial outbreak.

"That expense has continued to mount because we have patrolled the closures that continued as a precautionary measure for more than 12 months."

More investment

A Defra spokesman said: "We recognise the good work that Local Authorities do in dealing with disease outbreaks and the close cooperation we have developed with them.

"There is no specific disease outbreak budget in Defra and all Defra expenditure relating to the outbreaks in 2007 was funded from within Defra's budget.

He added: "Where Local Authorities act during an emergency, they do so on their own responsibility rather than on the instructions of Defra.

"Operating partners in the public sector who are involved in emergency response should seek any extra funding required through their own normal funding channels."

MPs have called for lessons to be learnt following the outbreak.

A report said that while some UK facilities were "world class", others needed more investment.