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Farmers bring foot-and-mouth case Farmers bring foot-and-mouth case
(10 minutes later)
The two laboratories at the centre of last year's foot-and-mouth outbreak and the government are to be sued for damages, the BBC has learned.The two laboratories at the centre of last year's foot-and-mouth outbreak and the government are to be sued for damages, the BBC has learned.
If the High Court case brought by 14 farmers is successful, the labs and the government could face further claims which could total more than £100m.If the High Court case brought by 14 farmers is successful, the labs and the government could face further claims which could total more than £100m.
The outbreak occurred in Normandy in Surrey at the beginning of August 2007.The outbreak occurred in Normandy in Surrey at the beginning of August 2007.
Both labs have consistently denied any failure in their duty of care, and the government has denied any negligence.Both labs have consistently denied any failure in their duty of care, and the government has denied any negligence.
The losses being claimed are principally due to the export ban imposed on the UK, movement restrictions put in place during the outbreak and lost turnover due to the disruption of farming businesses.
Broken drain
Two official investigations into the outbreak concluded that the most likely sources of the foot-and-mouth virus were two nearby laboratories at Pirbright which stocked samples of the same form of virus that had infected local animals.
These were the Institute for Animal Health, which is a publicly-funded research organisation, and Merial Animal Health Limited, a privately run vaccine production company.
The investigators concluded the virus had escaped from the broken drainage system which served both laboratories; but they were unable to pinpoint which of the two facilities as responsible for the leak.
The inquiries also criticised the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) which is responsible for running the Pirbright site.
It emerged that Defra knew the two laboratories considered the old effluent drains ought to be renewed. Defra was at the time responsible for inspecting the laboratories.
The 14 farmers are alleging that the Laboratories and Defra are jointly and severally responsible for the losses they incurred as a result of the outbreak which total about £1.5m.