PAISLEY CALLS FOR ACTION ON SHEEP SALES

DUP leader Ian Paisley has called for action on the issue of resuming sheep sales in Northern Ireland, following the continued scaling down of foot-and-mouth disease precautions.

Dr Paisley, Chairs of the Agriculture Committee, issued the plea after Department of Agriculture serology tests showed the virus was not generally present in sheep apart from a cluster of selected flocks where the virus was swiftly dealt with.

Describing the continued ban on the sale of non-pedigree sheep as detrimental to farmers ‘trying to earn a living’, Dr Paisley said he had written to Agriculture Minister Brid Rodgers, presenting the case for the resumption of the sale of all types of sheep. He warned that to delay action on the issue would irrevocably disrupt the farming calendar, and would have serious consequences on breeding stock.Relaxation of foot-and-mouth restrictions has meant that farmers have been allowed to move sheep to common grazing for the past month, with sales of pedigree sheep to resume from July 30. (CL) `