Eradicating BSE cost taxpayer €1bn

THE FULL cost of eradicating BSE from cattle herds has cost the taxpayer over €1 billion, it has emerged.

The State’s financial watchdog, the Comptroller and Auditor General, yesterday said the costs will continue to mount if existing disease control programmes continue.

It has also emerged that the Department of Agriculture has spent just €2.4m on research into the disease, despite the massive amounts spent tackling BSE.