Livestock imports halted amid new FMD alert

Imports of livestock from England to Ireland have been halted after another suspected outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in the UK, the Agriculture Minister in the North, Michelle Gildernew, said today.

One shipment of cattle into the North has already been returned and Belfast minister Michelle Gildernew said other export licences had been withdrawn and disinfectant mats placed at airports and ports.