The Northern Irish beef industry is in "grave danger" if the British government does not attempt to negotiate immediately its exemption from the worldwide ban on British beef, MPs warned in a report published yesterday. The Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, a cross-party body, said the incidence of BSE was lower in Northern Ireland than the rest of Britain and was now on a par with the Republic's. To date the crisis had cost the industry almost £120 million in lost sales.
The MPs warned that the North's beef industry was "in grave danger" and that if the ban was not lifted a "question mark" hung over its future.
Although" the report supported the British government's proposal for a certified herd scheme, which would allow beef to be exported from animals under 30 months old from BSE-free herds, the MPs argued that this should be implemented "urgently".