THE EUROPEAN Parliament this week launched a scathing attack on the British Government's handling of the foot-and-mouth crisis.

A total of 481 MEPs from across Europe supported the damning report. Only British Labour MEPs voted against it.

The report concluded that emergency vaccination must be a first choice option in controlling any future outbreaks.

It called for a ban on imports from non-EU countries where foot-and-mouth disease was endemic and demanded tougher action against illegal meat imports, which it identified as the most likely source of the disease's entry into the EU.

The United Kingdom office of the European Parliament said the report noted that "bureaucracy, delays in decision-making and the lack of effective contingency plans contributed to the problems".

Other parts noted that "mass culling on the scale seen in the UK and the Netherlands will not be publicly acceptable again".

The report said the contiguous cull policy was designed to protect meat exports but actually caused far greater economic loss than vaccination because of its impact on communities, tourism and other industries.

It called for a shift in emphasis from purely commercial considerations to animal welfare concerns and the social and psychological impact on the communities affected.

The report highlighted problems caused by bureaucracy and delays in decision making and action, particularly in carcase disposal. It also pointed to inadequately informed veterinary staff, staff shortages at control centres, and some violations of animal welfare legislation during culls.

"These shortcomings and the sometimes inadequate information policy caused considerable stress among those concerned," the report stated. "In individual cases, it was reported that farmers who were affected had been intimidated and pressurised in connection with the culls."

The 30-strong panel of MEPs who carried out the inquiry visited Northumberland and Cumbria to gather evidence from those involved.

Labour MEPs put forward a series of amendments but all were rejected.

Martin Callanan, North East Conservative MEP, claimed the Labour MEPs' stance showed the Government had no intention of listening to the findings. "This report, supported by Socialists from across the EU, shames the Government and stands as a lasting testimony to its catastrophic handling of the crisis," he claimed.

But Dr Gordon Adam, a North-East Labour MEP and party agricultural and rural affairs spokesman, claimed bad farming practice was the root cause of the outbreak. He said the report was particularly good in its recommendation for dealing with future outbreaks but claimed it also contained some errors of fact with "hearsay and hindsight having been the chief witnesses"