Bird Flu: New Uk Restrictions

The government today announced it was bringing in new regulations to combat the risks of bird flu.

The announcement came as officials revealed that two birds had probably died of the H5N1 strain in the UK - one more than had been previously reported.

Margaret Beckett, the environment secretary, told the Commons that bird fairs, markets and shows would be banned except where risk assessments showed they could go ahead safely.

She said the regulations, to be brought before MPs within days, would establish a register of commercial poultry producers. The possibility of keeping poultry indoors was also being urgently discussed with the industry.

The H5N1 strain has killed 62 people in Asia over the past two years and has devastated poultry stocks.

Its recent discovery in more than a dozen countries has prompted global efforts to contain its spread. Scientists fear it may mutate into a form that could be passed between humans, potentially killing millions.

The EU yesterday banned imports of captive live birds from other countries after reports that a dead parrot at a quarantine centre in Essex had the virus.

There is confusion over whether the parrot, which had come from South America, died from H5N1 after the chief vet, Debby Reynolds, yesterday told MPs its test results could have been mixed up with those of other birds.

However, Ms Beckett today revealed two other exotic birds held together at the same quarantine facility died of H5N1 on October 16, according to initial tests.

The two birds had come from Surinam and Taiwan, and Ms Beckett said: "Experts are working on the hypothesis that the virus came from Taiwan and was transferred during quarantine."

Other birds had died in the quarantine area before October 16, and 32 were being kept in a freezer for analysis.

Ms Beckett said "some" of the birds had the H5N1 strain, but did not give a figure. She said staff who had come into contact with the birds had been given anti-viral drugs.

Fifteen consignments of birds remained in quarantine and their release would be assessed on a "case by case basis".

Ms Beckett insisted the UK's quarantine system was working because the infected birds had died in quarantine.

She said Britain's disease-free status on avian flu remained unaffected, although ministers and officials needed to remain vigilant.

"We are taking these developments very seriously, but they are not in themselves a cause for undue alarm," she added. "Avian flu does not at present transmit easily to humans."

However, the Tory environment spokesman, Oliver Letwin, said the government's response to bird flu had been characterised by "confusion" and "inactivity".

He asked why Ms Beckett and her ministers had resisted EU proposals for a ban on commercial wild bird imports for six months.

"Can you explain why you and your ministers have presided for so long over quarantine procedures that allow birds from different continents to be kept together, that tests are pooled and that there is no clarity in your department about the true implication of the tests?" he said.

He also asked for a guarantee that compensation to poultry keepers if their flocks were slaughtered would be sufficient to encourage full reporting of any outbreaks of disease.

In other developments today, the presence of the H5N1 strain was confirmed in Croatia following tests on swans that were found dead at a nature park.

Meanwhile, the EU insisted it was safe to eat poultry products.

The European food safety authority, based in Italy, moved to quash reports it might issue warnings that raw eggs and uncooked chicken should be avoided.

Yesterday, its director of science, Herman Koë, told media organisations that, although there was no proof that people could contract the virus through eating chicken, it would "theoretically" be possible.

His comments were picked up by a number of newspapers, with Italy's Corriere della Sera saying: "It might be the end of mayonnaise, steak tartare and tiramisu".

The Financial Times reported that an EU eggs warning could be imminent, but an EU spokesman said: "We don't think there is a risk of avian flu from the consumption of eggs, whether raw or cooked."

Advice from the British Food Standards Agency stated that eggs should be properly cooked, although a spokesman said the policy was based more on fears over salmonella than of bird flu.

Chicken consumption in Italy last month fell by 40% amid heightened fears of bird flu, while France reported that sales of poultry products had declined by 20% last week.

French authorities were today examining the bodies of 11 starlings found dead in the centre of the country. The birds were all found under the same tree in the city of Macon, and initial lab tests were expected later today.

Slovenia and Hungary were also testing birds found dead for signs of bird flu. Yesterday, German authorities confirmed that dead wild geese in the west of the country had tested positive for the disease.