LONDON: The UK government on Tuesday ordered all poultry in England to be kept inside due to escalating cases of avian influenza.
The order takes effect from Thursday.
“The new measures mean bird keepers across the whole of England must house all poultry and captive birds if they keep more than 50... or if they sell or give eggs away,” a statement said.
Similar limited restrictions were made in parts of north, central and eastern England last week.
“Given the continued increase in the number of avian influenza cases in kept birds and wild birds across England, we are now taking the difficult step to extend the housing measures to the whole of England,” said UK Chief Veterinary Officer Christine Middlemiss.
The risk to human health remained “low” and that “properly cooked” poultry and eggs were safe to eat, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said.
There were 85 recorded avian flu outbreaks in poultry farms in Europe between August 1 and late October with 28 in the last week of that period, according to the Europe-wide ESA animal health monitor.
Of those six outbreaks were in Britain.
In January, following an uptick in cases, the UK government ordered mandatory culls in England of birds within a three kilometer (1.8 mile) radius of a confirmed case, as well as stepped up hygiene measures and controls across wider areas.
The virus can spread through droppings and saliva or contaminated food and water.
Vaccinations against bird flu are currently not allowed in the UK, except in zoos.
UK government orders poultry restrictions as avian flu spreads
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UK government orders poultry restrictions as avian flu spreads
- The risk to human health remained “low” and that “properly cooked” poultry and eggs were safe to eat
- The virus can spread through droppings and saliva or contaminated food and water
Greek coast guard search for 15 after migrant boat found adrift
- The two survivors reported that the vessel had become unstable due to bad weather and there was no means of getting shelter, food or water
ATHENS: Greek coast guard were on Monday searching for 15 people who fell into the water from a migrant boat that was found drifting off the coast of Crete with 17 bodies on board.
The 17 fatalities, all of them men, were discovered on Saturday on the craft, which was taking on water and partially deflated, some 26 nautical miles (48 kilometers) southwest of the island.
Post-mortem examinations were being carried out to determine how they died but Greek public television channel ERT suggested they may have suffered from hypothermia or dehydration.
A Greek coast guard spokeswoman told AFP that two survivors reported that “15 people fell in the water” after the motor cut out on Thursday, then the vessel drifted for two days.
At the time, Crete and much of the rest of Greece was battered by heavy rain and storms.
The two survivors reported that the vessel had become unstable due to bad weather and there was no means of getting shelter, food or water.
The vessel had 34 people on board and had left the Libyan port of Tobruk on Wednesday, the Greek port authorities said. Most of those who died came from Sudan and Egypt.
It was initially spotted by a Turkish-flagged cargo ship on Saturday, triggering a search that included ships and aircraft from the Greek coast guard and the European Union border agency Frontex.
Migrants have been trying to reach Crete from Libya for the last year, as a way of entering the European Union. But the Mediterranean crossing is perilous.
In Brussels, the EU’s 27 members on Monday backed a significant tightening of immigration policy, including the concept of returning failed asylum-seekers to “return hubs” outside the bloc.
The UN refugee agency said more than 16,770 asylum seekers in the EU have arrived on Crete since the start of the year — more than any other island in the Aegean Sea.
Greece’s conservative government has also toughened its migration policy, suspending asylum claims for three months, particularly those coming to Crete from Libya.
