Farmers across the region were today poised to begin moving their animals to approved abattoirs as foot-and-mouth restrictions were eased.

County trading standards chiefs urged them to be patient, saying they would take no chances which might result in the disease spreading to North Yorkshire.

The trading standards department at North Yorkshire County Council has been authorised by the Government to issue licences for the controlled movement of animals unaffected by the illness.

North Yorkshire has not yet had a confirmed case of foot and mouth, although a suspected case has been discovered just over the West Yorkshire border at a farm in Thorner, near Wetherby.

Department head Stuart Pudney said some farmers had been ringing the council impatiently over the weekend, expecting to get an instant licence.

But he said the authority was first asking a series of questions to ensure there was no danger of their animals having the disease. And he made no apology if the authority's caution meant farmers having to wait a few days. In a sample of cases, verification of farmers' answers would be carried out.

He said the first licences might be issued either tomorrow or later today in the most urgent cases.

A number of abattoirs have been licensed by the Food Standards Agency's York-based Meat Hygiene Service as suitable to receive animals for slaughter, including the one at Malton Bacon Factory.

But the Malton slaughterhouse will not be reopening for the time being.

Meanwhile, agricultural students at Bishop Burton College in East Yorkshire are using the Internet to log into lectures, communicate with tutors and submit work after being sent home to their farms as a precautionary measure.

But the use of the net by the Ministry of Agriculture to publicise foot and mouth information has been slammed by the Country Land and Business Association, which says many smaller farmers are not connected to the Internet and do not have access to the website.

Disinfectant-soaked mats have been laid on open moorland roads which pass over cattle grids by North Yorkshire County Council to help prevent the spread of the disease.

The National Farmers' Union has thanked members of the public for acting responsibly during the foot and mouth crisis by not walking on farmland in Yorkshire.

Dalby Forest is the latest tourist and walking attraction to be closed to the public as restrictions continue to be tightened up.

Fears were growing today that thousands of farm animals on Dartmoor may have to be slaughtered after an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease on one of the Prince of Wales' Duchy of Cornwall farms.

As the number of confirmed cases across mainland Britain and Northern Ireland rose to 69, the National Farmers' Union described the Dartmoor outbreak as a "nightmare scenario".

Officials said there were 53,700 animals earmarked for slaughter nationwide as a result of the epidemic.

Deputy chief veterinary officer Richard Cawthorne refused to speculate on whether the outbreak had reached its peak.

But he said it was a "relatively self-limiting disease" which could be kept under control by tight restrictions.

Junior Agriculture Minister Baroness Hayman said abattoirs were expected to begin slaughtering animals on Tuesday.

Updated: 11:56 Monday, March 05, 2001