Two more people 'suffering from foot-and-mouth'

Two more cases of suspected foot-and-mouth disease in humans are being investigated by the British Public Health Laboratory Service.

Tests are being carried out to confirm whether the people do have the disease, a PHLS spokesman said.

The latest suspected cases come a day after it emerged tests were being carried out on a slaughterman from north Cumbria suspected of contracting the disease.

A PHLS spokesman would not say where the latest suspect cases were or who could be affected, but said they were not in north Cumbria.

He added: "Two more cases have been referred to us and we are investigating them. There are a lot of symptoms that can seem similar to foot-and-mouth and the case yesterday has obviously raised concerns."

The disease is extremely mild in humans, with people suffering flu-like symptoms and blisters on hands and in the mouth.

There are no recorded cases of human-to-human transmission of the disease and there has only been one previous case of human foot-and-mouth in the UK.