Chief vet extends bird flu zone over England

A BIRD flu prevention zone has been declared across England as all farmers are told to cover ponds in netting to prevent infected birds landing.

The move, announced by Professor Nigel Gibbens, the Government’s chief veterinary officer, means all poultry and bird keepers in England have to follow strict measures to protect their livestock from the disease.

Thirteen dead wild birds were confirmed to have the virus in Warwickshire, following the discovery of the disease in wild birds in Dorset, where 31 infected birds have now been identified.

A local prevention zone put in place in Dorset has been extended to the whole of England.

The dead birds in Warwickshire are still being tested but it is thought they had the H5N6 strain of the virus, which has been circulating in wild populations in Europe in recent months and which is deadly to birds.

But officials said it was a different variant from the H5N6 that affected people in China last year, and the risk to public health was very low. The Food Standards Agency said bird flu did not pose a food safety risk.

Prof Gibbens said: “We are extending our action to help prevent the virus spreading to poultry and other domestic birds.”